The Footsteps of my Father
by A Amelia Black
Summary: Brianna was just your normal, average girl, with a few hidden talents. Brought up in the Bronx, she was quick on her feet and sharpminded. But now, as she nears her tenth birthday, she'll discover a few things that will change her life forever.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: everything is JKR's except my own OC's :)**

**A/N: Thanks for checking this out. This was my very first fan fic, so go easy on me nods Bri would appreciate that**

**Brianna: I'm not a Mary Sue, don't worry**

**A: Nope. Don't worry :)**

**I'm interested in your thoughts so please review, Brianna would definitely like that :) Happy OC's make it easier to write more chapters nods **

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**§_ The Footsteps of my Father _§**

**Chapter One**

**-The Tower-**

Brianna, Bri for short, Olsen was your average kid and didn't expect much to come from her life. She was very bright for her age, but in her school, it didn't really matter. The teachers knew that she was smart, but if they treated her better, the other kids would resent it. She lived in New York City, and not in the better part, for her family was very poor, and they barely had enough money to send her and her siblings to school. After awhile, Brianna had grown accustomed to hearing gunshots being fired off in the alleys near their apartment and the many gang fights that would occur daily. She was only nine years old, but she helped her grandfather out at the nearby grocery mart, bagging groceries. It was the only time she really got to spend with her grandfather, as he didn't exactly approve of her mother's marriage. Her father's meager income was the only thing that kept food on the table since her mother didn't work. Her mother couldn't work, since she had to take care of Brianna's four-year old twin brother and sister: Maria and Terrance. Brianna did what she could around the house, but between school, homework, and helping her grandfather, she had very little time to herself. When she did have some time alone, however, she could be found sitting up in the small cubby above their apartment, looking out over the city; the Tower, she called it, because it was her special place.

Brianna sat in the Tower, looking out the dirty round window at the tall skyscrapers of New York City. There was a slight chilly breeze coming from the base of the walls, cutting right through the thin, worn clothes she wore. Though, no matter how raggedy her clothes became, they were always clean, something her mother was adamant about. Brianna huddled by the window, hugging her arms around her knees. There was no heat in the Tower and the warped wood did little to keep the cold night air out. The Tower itself was small, barely enough room for the nine-year old girl and her pile of books she had borrowed from the school library. The ceiling was low and while it had been no problem with Brianna was younger, now she had to hunch slightly.

She tried to stretch out her long legs to ease a cramp that had decided to make a home in her thigh but her foot bumped the pile of books beside her. She reached out to prevent the books from falling down the opening in the floor that led to the apartment she lived in. Once she was satisfied that they wouldn't fall, she looked back out the window, her sneakers resting against the opposite wall. Her knees were slightly bent in the cramped space but at least the pain in her thigh was lessening. She took a book off the top of her pile and placed it in her lap, running her fingers over the worn cover. It was her favorite: _Dragonworld_, a book about magic, dragons, knights, castles and powerful mages. She looked down at the book, tracing the title with her fingers, smiling softly. Even the title had been worn down from all the times she had borrowed this book. Anything that dealt with fantasy and magic she loved and she wondered if one day she'd be able to buy these books that she loved so much.

Brianna glanced at a piece of broken mirror that was nestled in the corner by her feet. That was the only way she knew what she looked like, since there were no mirrors in the apartment. They were too expensive, her father had said, and they didn't need them. That's what you had other people for.

Brianna picked up the piece of mirror and looked at it. All she saw was a pale-faced girl with white-blond hair pulled back in a pony-tail, a few wisps framing her face. Silver eyes looked back at her with no expression visible. Brianna sighed, setting down the piece of mirror and moved the book off her lap. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and carefully exited the Tower, climbing down the rickety ladder to the room that she shared with her brother and sister.

She could hear pots banging in the kitchen and decided to investigate. A delicious aroma filled her senses as she walked into the living room/kitchen. "Maria, you know better. Terrance, please, not while I'm cooking. No, no, don't touch that!" Brianna walked into the small kitchen to see her mother standing at the stove, Maria and Terrance pulling at her skirts. Her mother, a woman in her mid-forties, had graying hair tied back in a bun, and wore long skirts. The apron she wore had a few patches, but like the rest of the apartment, it was clean. Maria and Terrance both had jet-black hair and matching eyes. At present, they were wearing baggy T-shirts and pants that only reached to their shins, and were barefooted. Her mother turned and sighed in relief. "Oh, good, Bri, you're here. Could you please watch your brother and sister while I attempt to cook?" she asked with a smile.

Brianna nodded. "Sure." She looked at Maria and Terrance, who were now reaching for a plate of cookies on the table. "Come on, you two. Momma's cooking. You want to me to tell you a story?" They both looked at her, their eyes lighting up, and grins spreading across their near-identical faces. One thing the twins loved were stories, since they didn't have books to read and Brianna had such a vivid imagination, she would always tell stories. That was the only thing that could distract them from whatever they were doing. Brianna saw her mother mouth "thank you" and Brianna smiled. She held out her hands and Maria and Terrance placed their hands in hers. She led them into their bedroom and sat down on her bed. They sat in front of her, eager expressions on their faces.

"Story!" Terrance cried.

Brianna smiled. "Yes, Terrance."

"Magic one Bri!" Maria declared.

"Yes, magic!" Terrance echoed.

Brianna nodded. "Magic it shall be. Now let's see, where should I begin…" Brianna said thoughtfully.

"Once upon a time!" Maria said, bouncing on the bed.

"Okay. Once upon a time, there was a prince and princess. The prince was set to marry the princess, but an evil wizard wanted the princess for himself. So he cast a spell on her. He turned her into a swan and only in the light of a full moon could she turn back into a human, but just while the moonlight lasted. An ugly witch wanted the prince for herself and so she cast a spell on herself to make her look exactly like the princess, whom the prince loved very much. Well, the princess' friends, a turtle and a frog, wanted to help the princess. The only way to break the spell was if the prince confessed his love to her. One night, the princess found out that her prince was going to confess his love to the witch, whom he thought was his love. The princess and her friends tried to reach the castle, but the evil wizard locked them up. She managed to find a hole and fly out. She rushed towards the castle, trying to reach her prince in time."

"Children! Dinner!" Brianna heard her mother call from the kitchen.

"No, no! Finish!" Terrance cried.

Brianna smiled. "We'll finish after dinner, but you have to promise me one thing."

"What?" they asked in unison.

"You have to be very good during dinner and I want you to help Momma with anything she asks after dinner, alright?" They nodded and jumped off the bed, running into the kitchen. Brianna slid off of her bed and walked into the kitchen. Her father had just come home and was sitting at the small, round, table that sat in the middle of the kitchen. Clean counters filled one wall with cupboards above, one was missing a door, revealing the dishes that sat on the shelves. The wallpaper was a faded yellow with small blue flowers and the sink was filled with dishes, which Brianna knew that she would have to wash later that evening. Her mother looked at her, smiling, as she placed the pot of stew in the middle of the table.

"Thank you so much, Bri. I don't know what I'd do without you," her mother said, smiling gratefully.

Brianna shrugged. "No problem, Momma," she said. She sat down next to her father, Maria and Terrance sitting on her other side. "How was work, Daddy?"

Her father looked at her, tired and worn as always. "Well, today was a little more interesting, if interesting is the word you'd use. There was another riot outside the factory; this time they actually broke some of the windows."

Brianna's eyes widened and her mother shook her head. "Those rioters; don't they have anything better to do than make trouble for the factory?" her mother asked as she sat down. She began filling their dishes with stew.

"Freedom of speech, dearest; unfortunately," her father said, shrugging. "There's not much we can really do. The police stay away from this part of the city because of all the trouble that arises."

"I don't think that's right," her mother said. Brianna took a bit of her stew, savoring the flavor. That was something that she always looked forward to, for her mother was a great cook and there was always food on the table, no matter what. "You work very hard at what you do and they just cause trouble, which could eventually lead to the closure of the factory. And that's not what we need at the moment."

Her father nodded. "Exactly, but there's no getting through to them; they just wave their signs and throw stones and other things. It's a mess and it's a struggle just to leave to come home. We have to exit out a back entrance, sneaking away. It's pitiful, but it's what we have to do."

"Can't you stand up to them?" Brianna asked.

Her father looked at her. "Bri, we've tried. It doesn't work. Jerod nearly got shot the other day when he tried to get them to leave." He sighed and took a bite of his stew.

"Well, let's turn to happier subjects, shall we? I don't want your blood pressure rising any more than it already is," her mother said. She looked at the twins. "How was school?"

"We colored!" Terrance said through a mouthful of stew.

"Now Terrance, you remember what I told you about speaking with your mouth full?" her mother scolded.

Terrance swallowed. "Sorry."

Her mother smiled. "It's okay. So you colored today? That's great."

Terrance and Maria nodded vigorously. "Yep! We drew pictures too! I'll show you!" Maria exclaimed. She moved to get up from the table, but her mother put a hand on her shoulder.

"Not now Maria. You can show us your pictures later." Maria nodded and her mother looked at Brianna. "How did your math test go?"

Brianna shrugged. "As well as a math test can go, I guess. I think I did alright."

Her mother nodded. "That's good."

"Did Bobby give you any more trouble today?" her father asked. Bobby was the school bully and he especially liked to pick on Brianna because she was poor.

"I hid from him."

Her father shook his head. "You should stand up to him."

"Then why don't you stand up to the rioters?" Brianna asked.

Her father looked uncomfortable. "Those are two completely different things." Brianna opened her mouth to speak, but her mother shook her head, so Brianna began eating her stew, focusing her attention on a very interesting piece of meat.

Dinner finished rather smoothly and after, Brianna helped her mother clean up the kitchen, and then went into her bedroom to work on homework. Maria and Terrance had to get to bed, so Brianna shut off the light. She turned on the small lamp on her desk and took a seat, opening her math homework. "Bri?"

"Yes, Maria?"

"Can you finish the story tomorrow?"

"Yes, Maria."

"Good."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

* * *

Brianna stared at the piece of paper in front of her full of math equations. They were working on long division and it was proving quite a challenge. It just took so long to do! Once she understood it, she knew it would be simple, but she didn't understand. She stared at the numbers, wishing that the answers would just magically appear, but she knew that wasn't possible. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. She was getting tired. She quickly wrote down answers and hoped that they were right. Then she shut off the light and climbed into bed, falling into a dreamless sleep.

In the morning, Brianna awoke to snow falling outside. She bundled up as best she could, heaved her book-bag over her shoulder and pulled on her boots, beginning the long walk to school. Two weeks until Christmas, one week until break began. Though she knew that there wouldn't be many presents under the tree, she was just glad to spend time with her family. Also, her birthday was coming up and she would be turning ten on December 20th. She grinned, thinking about her upcoming birthday; the best time of the year in her mind.

Suddenly, something wet and cold hit her in the back of the head. She clenched her fists and turned to see Bobby and his gang of teenagers. They were in sixth grade and they thought that since they were the oldest in the school that gave them the right to pick on the rest of them. Bobby was laughing, but he stopped when a snowball hit him squarely in the face. "You'll pay for that, Olsen," he growled. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the principal walking nearby. She just gave him a smirk and headed up the stairs to school, knowing perfectly well that Bobby wouldn't do anything when the principal was around. He was thick, but not that thick.

As she walked down the hall, she heard the usual round of comments, "Where'd you pick that up, Olsen? The junkyard?" She just ignored them as always and focused on getting her books for her first class.

During math, she was listening to the teacher go over their homework, when a fight broke out in the back of the classroom. Mrs. Carlin just sighed and pushed a red button on the wall. Brianna knew that the principal would be there soon, and Principal Mason was not someone to mess with. The students called him Maniac Mason because he was a very strict principal and students that were out of line were severely punished. Unfortunately, this didn't make the students respect the teachers any more than before and Brianna thought that the principal was too easy on the disorderly students. In the slums, kids didn't have any respect for the adults, and it was evident in school. Brianna wished more than anything that she could be let free of this prison, but she knew that was about as likely as a snowball in hell.

* * *

Before lunch, Brianna hurried to the school library. Mrs. Wallaby, the librarian, was stamping some books when Brianna came in. Mrs. Wallaby looked up and smiled. "Back again, Bri?" she asked.

"You bet," Brianna said, grinning.

"I have a stack of books I thought that you'd like." Mrs. Wallaby reached down under the desk and put a tall tower of books on the desk.

Brianna gave her already-read books to Mrs. Wallaby. "Thanks! Can I pick them up after school?"

"Of course," Mrs. Wallaby said, smiling.

Brianna was eating her lunch when her only friend, Teresa, a fifth-grader, sat down across from her. Teresa's family were Hispanic and when they had moved here, they had spoken very little English. After a few years, and Brianna's mother helping them to adjust and teaching them English, the two families became quite close. Teresa's family had a little more money than Brianna's, but Teresa preferred Goodwill clothes over more expensive clothes. Today she had tied her black hair in a ponytail and was sporting a black Metallica T-shirt and blue jeans.

"This food is so gross," Teresa commented, holding up with her fork what she supposed passed for a salsbury steak. To Brianna, it just looked like a lump of brown glop. She poked her own, expecting it to move or speak up anytime. She didn't know what the school put in what they called food, and she didn't want to know.

"I wouldn't touch it if I were you," Brianna said. "It's probably not even edible."

Teresa nodded, shaking off the brown lump onto her tray. She picked up her roll and bit into it. "How'd you do on your math test?"

Brianna shrugged. "I passed."

Teresa nodded. "That's good." She smiled. "Did you hear about Vicki and Matt?"

"What's up with them now?"

"Well –" Teresa got cut off as Bobby and his gang walked up to their table.

"What do you want?" Brianna asked.

"Just a friendly chat," Bobby said, smirking.

"Nothing's friendly with you."

Bobby sneered. "Maybe this will go better with that trash you call clothes," he said and promptly took her tray and shoved it onto her shirt. She stood up, brown goop dribbling down her once-white blouse, the best shirt that she owned. Her grandfather had given it to her on her last birthday and it was a very nice shirt; or had been. She could feel the rage building up inside of her. Suddenly an ear-splitting noise filled the cafeteria as every single window shattered, the glass flying everywhere. People screamed, diving to the floor to avoid the glass shards. Bobby, being the idiot he was, just looked around, his sneer disappearing. Taking this chance, Brianna picked up her milk carton and dumped its contents on the front of Bobby's pants. He looked down at the milk covering his pants and then glared at her murderously.

"You really should try to hold it. There is a thing called a bathroom," Brianna said, smirking as the kids around them began laughing, forgetting for a moment about the shattered windows. Then the teachers rushed in, many of them checking on the students and making sure no one had been hurt. Mrs. Roberto, the school nurse, was moving around quickly, helping any of the kids that had been cut by flying glass.

One of the teachers, making his rounds, stopped by Brianna and Bobby, pulling them apart.

"Go to your class," one teacher said to Bobby, who, after one final glare at Brianna, stalked away. The teacher, who Brianna recognized as Mr. Young, their gym teacher, looked at Brianna. "What happened here? Why are all the windows shattered?"

Brianna shrugged, trying to act nonchalant, but inside she was very nervous. What had _happened? Why did they all of a sudden shatter like that?_ It was just like one of those stories that she read with those polter-things. "I don't know. They just did."

Mr. Young looked around, shaking his head. "I don't know where the money is going to come from to fix this," he sighed. He walked away to join the principal, who had just walked in.

"Everyone, please exit the cafeteria and be careful of the glass. Please go to your classes," Mr. Young said over the hush that had overcome the cafeteria. One by one, the students stood and left, the teachers looking around.

"That was so weird!" Teresa exclaimed as she and Brianna walked to their history class.

"Yeah," Brianna said softly. "Weird."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: everything is JKR's except my OCs**

**A/N: This chapter, a few more interesting incidents. As well as the beginnings of a little thing we call magic ;) **

**Thoughts, comments are appreciated! Reviews are welcome**

**Brianna: yes please :) **

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**Chapter Two**

**-Fire and Ashes-**

"Thank you, have a nice day," Brianna said as she handed the bag of groceries to the man.

Brianna watched as the cashier rang up the next person's groceries. Bags, jars, and cans slid down to the end where Brianna stood. She opened another paper bag and began placing the items in it. She handed the bag to the woman, who smiled. "Aren't you a little young to be working?"

Brianna shrugged. "I'm just helping out my grandfather," Brianna said. "Have a nice day."

"You're a good child. Your parents must be very proud," the woman said and walked away. Though she didn't show it on the outside, inside Brianna was beaming.

"Bri, why don't you go on and head home. It should be dinner soon. You don't want to keep your momma waiting." Brianna looked to see her grandfather looking at her, a soft smile on his face.

Brianna nodded. "Okay." She finished bagging the current customer's groceries and handed the bag to the woman. "Thank you, have a nice day." Brianna left the end of the counter and headed into the employee's lounge to get ready for the cold walk home. It was a small room, with a counter where the employees could set their food and drinks and several chair s along it. There was also a long couch by one wall, across from the T.V. that was bolted up in a corner near the ceiling.

Fred, red-headed and a spirit to match, was sitting at a small counter, drinking coffee and reading one of the British newspapers. Ronald, the oldest employee, was British and constantly liked keeping tabs on what was happening. So he'd always have a copy of the _Daily Telegraph_ or some other sort of British newspaper lying around. She was sitting on the couch, drinking a mug of hot chocolate, when she saw something of interest on the front page. "Fred, could I see the front page?"

Fred looked at her and smiled. "Sure, sweetheart." He took the front page and handed it to her before going back to his newspaper.

"Thanks," Brianna said, and began to read.

It was an article about an escapee from one of their prisons

_The criminal is still at large and we have yet to find out his whereabouts. There are men out there searching for this escapee, but they have had no luck thus far. Be careful out there on the streets, for he could be anywhere. If you see this man, please call your local police station immediately. He is a very dangerous man and needs to be apprehended immediately._

There was a picture of the man next to the article. He had scraggly black hair, and wore a very dark and menacing expression on his face.

Brianna shuddered, taking another sip of her hot chocolate. "I'm not surprised they haven't caught him yet." Brianna looked up to see Wilma standing in the doorway, looking at the page that Brianna held. Wilma was the assistant manager, but she was very young-looking with her blond hair pulled back in a pony-tail and a crisp gray suit.

"Why do you say that?" Fred asked, looking at Wilma.

Wilma shrugged. "From what I've read in Ronald's papers, he escaped from an extremely well-guarded prison and if he could make the slip on them, who's to say he can't give the slip on all the people after him now?"

"Aren't you scared?" Brianna asked.

Wilma looked at her. "What's the use of worrying when there's so much else to be done? Frankly, this man is somewhere over in England, and I'm pretty sure he's not going to be booking a passage to the United States any time soon."

Brianna nodded. "Yeah," she said, "I guess."

Wilma gave her a smile. "Don't worry, dear, that's somewhere far away from here."

Brianna nodded and stood, setting the empty mug down on the counter with the rest of the dishes. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"You be careful out there. This is no place to be wandering around," Fred said. Brianna nodded and pulled her thin coat around her body. She moved to leave when Wilma stopped her.

"Bri, I wanted to give you this. It's for your birthday, but I thought you might like to have it now." Wilma handed Brianna a wrapped box with a bow.

Brianna grinned. "Thanks!" She un-wrapped the package and opened the box, pulling out a heavy winter coat with fur around the collar, at the ends of the sleeves, and around the base of the coat. Brianna's eyes lit up. "Thank you so much! It's so pretty!"

Wilma smiled as Brianna hugged her tightly. "Just something I thought you'd like."

Brianna smiled. "I love it!" She quickly set the box down and pulled on the coat. The fur was soft around her neck and she felt warm and safe in the coat. It reached all the way down to her knees.

"When I saw this in the window, I immediately thought of you."

"That's a beautiful coat, Wilma, where'd you find it?" Fred asked. Wilma leaned close to Fred and whispered something. His eyes widened. "Wow," was all he said.

"Thank you again," Brianna said, leaving the lounge. Wilma smiled and Brianna headed outside.

* * *

When Brianna showed her parents the coat that Wilma had given her, they both stared at her with wide eyes. "That must have cost a pretty penny," her mother exclaimed, fingering the soft fur.

"I wonder who she had to murder to get it," her father said jokingly.

Brianna smiled. "At least now I have something a little warmer."

Her parents nodded. "It's nice to know that there are decent people out there," her mother commented.

"Let me see! Let me see!" Maria cried, jumping up and down.

Brianna smiled and took off the coat, putting it on Maria. "There you go."

"Look at me! I'm a princess!" Maria declared, grinning. She strode around the living room, the coat trailing behind her.

"Well, little princess, even you have to sleep," her father said lovingly, picking up Maria.

"Daddy!" Maria protested.

"To the royal bedchamber," her father announced, winking at Brianna and her mother. He walked into the bedroom, closing the door. Terrance was already asleep.

"Well, I have some good news, Bri. I managed to get that brown stain out of your blouse," her mother said, handing Brianna her white blouse.

Brianna smiled. "Thank you!" she cried and hugged her mother.

"You're welcome. Now, off to bed. Last day of school before your break. Then you get to sleep in."

Brianna grinned. "Yes!" she cried, pumping her fist in the air. Her mother laughed and Brianna headed into her bedroom just as her father walked out.

"Maria insisted that she sleep in the coat. I hope you don't mind," her father said with a smile.

Brianna smiled. "Nope, not at all."

* * *

They were playing dodge-ball in gym on Friday, and it was one of Brianna's least favorite games because it never failed that Bobby and his gang would be on the other side and would heave all the balls at her. The way that their gym classes worked was to take grades one through three and mix them together and grades four through six together. Though there were about twenty different gym classes, the classes were still very large, due to the amount of students that went to the school.

Brianna ducked as Bobby heaved another ball at her head. "I really hate this game," Brianna muttered. Teresa had been hit earlier and was now sitting on the side-lines. Brianna picked up one of the smaller balls and heaved it towards the other team. She was pleased when the ball hit one of Bobby's gang members squarely in the face. Brianna laughed as the boy sulked off.

"You'll pay for that one, Olsen!" Bobby yelled.

"Whatever," Brianna muttered, still grinning. One of Bobby's goons heaved another ball at her, but his aim was poor, so she easily avoided it. As Brianna scampered around for balls, she noticed that she was one of the few left on her side and on the other side Bobby and a few of his goons were all that was left.

As her side dwindled, Bobby and his goons began picking up every ball that they could manage. Then they began barraging her with them, one after another. She got hit in the stomach by one and was moving to leave, but they still kept heaving the balls at her. They were throwing them so hard that it really had begun to hurt. She could feel her rage building up inside of her. "Stop!" she cried. Bobby and his goons kept laughing as tears of pain began to fill her eyes. She could vaguely hear Mr. Young trying to get them to stop, but it didn't stop.

Defiantly, she stood up and, as three balls flew at her face, they suddenly burst into flame and became piles of ashes on the gym floor. Then she collapsed into darkness.

* * *

As Brianna opened her eyes, a flash of red filled her vision and she groaned. She blinked, the room beginning to come into focus. As her vision cleared, she realized that she was in the nurse's office. Teresa was sitting next to her and smiled when she saw that Brianna had awaked. "You're awake!"

Mrs. Roberto, the school nurse, bustled over and forced Brianna to stay lying on her back. Mrs. Roberto was nearing her forties, but her plump build and her rosy cheeked face always made her seem younger. "No, no, you must stay lying down. You had quite a shock there, as I understand. You need some more rest. Here, drink this water if you can." Mrs. Roberto lifted Brianna's head and set the edge of the cup against Brianna's lips. The cool water felt refreshing and Brianna gulped it down. When she had drained the cup, she laid her head back down. "In a few hours, I'll check you over. Then you can go, if you are alright." Brianna nodded, which was a bad idea, since it sent daggers of pain shooting through her head. She closed her eyes, grimacing and didn't move, waiting for the pain to ease. Finally it did and Brianna managed to open her eyes once again. She noticed that Mrs. Roberto had moved away, taking care of another boy with his arm in a sling.

Teresa looked at Brianna, her face full of relief. "I don't know what happened, but that was really scary."

Brianna looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean? What happened?"

"Well, I really don't know. It was all really weird. Bobby and his idiot friends were heaving all those balls at you. Several of us were trying to keep them away from you and Mr. Young was trying to stop those jerks from throwing more balls. Then you just stood up and you had this really scary look on your face. You looked ready to murder something. Then, as some balls flew at you, they just burst into flames! It was really scary."

Brianna's eyes widened. "But – but that's impossible! How could they just burst into flames?"

Teresa shrugged. "How should I know? All I saw was it happen. Everyone was really shocked."

"I guess so. I know I am. Geez, first those windows shatter in the cafeteria and now balls burst into flames. I wonder what's going on."

Teresa shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe Bobby and his idiots rigged them."

Brianna shrugged. "Maybe," she said, but inside she didn't think so.

* * *

"Oh, we were so worried! I'm so glad you're alright!" her mother exclaimed when Brianna had come home.

"When we got that call, we didn't know what to think," her father said, shaking his head. "Balls bursting into flames? The first thing that came to mind was a bomb. I wouldn't be surprised if those boys had rigged those balls with something."

"Momma, Daddy, can you excuse me? I'm really tired. I need to go lay down or something," Brianna mumbled.

Her parents nodded. "Of course, dear. Just come into the kitchen when you feel hungry," her mother said.

Brianna nodded and went into her room. She climbed the ladder up to the Tower and sat in her usual spot by the window. She pulled a thin blanket over her legs and leaned against the wall, looking out the window_. What was going on? First the windows shatter, then dodge-balls burst into flames. Is there something wrong with me? Why is all this happening?_ She hugged her knees and put her chin on them, closing her eyes.

* * *

A delicious aroma made her open her eyes and she realized that it was dark outside, with only the faint light from the window across the way snaking its way into the Tower. Brianna pushed the blanket off her lap and slid over to the ladder, climbing down. She rubbed her eyes and walked into the kitchen, where the rest of her family was sitting, eating dinner. Her mother smiled. "Good, you're awake. Have a seat. Your dinner is on the counter."

Brianna nodded and took her plate of meat and vegetables and sat down between her father and Terrance. "How do you feel?" her father asked.

"Better," Brianna said. "A little stressed."

Her father nodded. "As well as you should be, after what happened."

"What happened?" Terrance asked.

"We'll talk later," her father said and Terrance went back to his dinner.

Brianna reached for her glass and suddenly it shattered. Her hand flashed back, narrowly avoiding getting cut. Her family stared at her and then at the pieces of broken glass. "Don't touch," her mother said as Maria reached for the pieces. Maria drew her hand back. Her mother quickly swept up the pieces, throwing them away. Nobody said anything and for that Brianna was grateful. _Why is all this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this? Now everyone is going to think I'm a weirdo or a psycho._

After dinner, Brianna sat in front of the fireplace, looking into the fire. Her mother was busy cleaning up the kitchen, and her father was in her bedroom with Maria and Terrance. Brianna could feel tears building up in her eyes. _What is wrong with me? _

She watched the flames leaping around in the fireplace and wished she could shape them. Make them look like peaceful pictures to soothe the raging turmoil within her. Without even realizing what she was doing, she reached her hand into the flames and began forming them into shapes. One was of a horse running and another was a star, and then one of a beautiful castle. A picture flashed in her mind of a huge manor, surrounded by trees.

"What are you doing!"

Brianna snapped back to the present and felt a sharp stab of pain in her hands. She quickly brought her hands near to her and realized that she had burned herself, but only a little. Her mother rushed over to her. "What were you thinking child?" she scolded. She forced Brianna to her feet and rushed her into the kitchen, putting soothing aloe on Brianna's hands and then wrapping them in bandages. "Look at me!" Brianna looked at her mother, who was looking at her very worriedly. "Why were you putting your hands in the fire? Answer me!"

"I- I – I don't know," Brianna said weakly.

"I'm surprised that you didn't burn your hands badly. Bri, is there something you want to talk to me about?"

Brianna looked at her mother in confusion. "What? No."

Her mother sighed, shaking her head. "That's the fourth strange thing that has happened to you in this past week, Bri." Then her mother's eyes widened. "Are you on drugs?"

Brianna's eyes widened. "Of course not! Why would I do something stupid like that?"

"Your behavior had become very strange lately. Your father and I have been talking and we think it'd be best if we take you to see Dr. Nemon tomorrow."

Brianna shoved herself back from her mother. "I'm not a psycho! I don't need to see him!"

"Bri, we need to find out if there's something deep inside that's making you become very troubled."

"I'm not going to become some stupid lab rat!"

"Of course not; we only want what's best for you."

"I'm not going!" Brianna yelled defiantly and ran out the front door, tears streaming down her face, vaguely hearing her mother scream after her to come back.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: property of JKR (except OCs)**

**A/N: Quick note. I know the colors of Ravenclaw are bronze and blue (book colors). However, in this fic I've chosen to use the movie colors of blue and white. I'm a stickler for blue and white, what can I say :)**

** I'm curious to see what you think of Gabriel and Sarah, and of the chapter in general. Any questions you have, ask them away. As I update, which I'm going to try to do on a regular basis, I'll answer them for you.**

**This chapter: new characters are introduced and Brianna gets a few shocks**

**Reviews are appreciated and welcome! Thanks :) **

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* * *

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**Chapter Three**

**-The Connor Estate -**

Brianna didn't remember walking far, or becoming unconscious, but when she awoke she realized that she was in Central Park. A foot of snow covered the grounds and she was lying in a pavilion, a dirty shoe lying a little distance away from her feet. She looked over and could see the snow swirling outside. The wind gusted, chilling her to the bone and she rubbed her arms, trying to keep warm. Her clothes weren't much of a barrier between her and the cold wind. Brianna rubbed her hands, which were red from the cold and then pulled up her knees and hugged them, resting her chin on them. She felt a few tears trickle down her cheeks. _I don't want to see that doctor! I'm not crazy. But what was happening? All those strange things; I can't even give a logical explanation for them, and I doubt some loony doctor can either._

Brianna glanced out at the snow. What she really needed was a cup of hot chocolate. She couldn't feel her fingers, or toes anymore, and her face was beginning to numb. She shivered. _I really should get up, but I just can't. And I don't want to go home. They'll take me to that doctor, and then I'll get locked up in a loony bin, like some crazy person. _Blackness swirled in front of her eyes as her eyelids drooped. Sleep was beginning to overtake her, and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. She tried to move her hand to rub her face to keep her awake, but she couldn't. Darkness filled her vision and she collapsed onto the snow covered floor.

"Love, I don't think she is going to make it."

"Sarah, please, be confident. She is probably much stronger than she appears."

"The poor thing, I wonder why she was out there in the snow, and look at her clothes! Gabriel, we need to get her into warmer clothes."

"Some of your things may fit her. I'll go find something."

Brianna numbly felt warm hands touching her face. "You poor darling, you are like a block of ice."

"Here, I found one of your jumpers and a pair of thick trousers. They were in the trunk with some of your older school things."

"Good, good, now give them to me and I'll put them on her."

"Very well. I will go into the kitchen and get some water boiling to make some of that tea that you make. It will be sure to warm her up."

"Thank you."

Brianna could hardly feel a thing, and her eyelids felt like rocks. She knew that the woman whose voice she was hearing was clothing her, but she couldn't move. Unconsciousness swept over her and she fell into a deep sleep.

What only seemed like moments later, she felt herself being propped up and a mug of something hot near her lips. "Here, love, drink this. It will do you some good." _British accents? Since when were we in England?_

She managed to open her mouth slightly and a warm, soothing liquid poured down her throat. She swallowed, coughing slightly. Almost immediately, feeling began to come back to her limbs as the liquid filled her entire body, warming her instantly. The cup was taken away and she felt someone lay her back down.

"Rest. You will be better soon," a woman's voice said warmly.

Brianna nodded slightly and, with the warmth from the liquid, sleep overcame her.

* * *

When Brianna regained consciousness, she opened her eyes slowly, sitting up. She looked around the room, her eyes widening. On the wall in front of her was a huge fireplace, with a fire roaring in the hearth, the stone mantel covered in evergreens, ready for Christmas. A large tapestry hung above the mantel of a huge, stone castle, with many towers, grassy fields stretched out around it. A beautiful lake could be seen behind the castle and the sky was bright blue. Brianna looked around the room. Mahogany bookshelves filled most of the walls. Two large, gothic windows were situated at either end of the room that nearly reached the ceiling; they were so tall and wide. Light poured in through the windows and she could see the snow swirling outside. She looked down at where she was lying and found that it was a large, black leather couch. Several plush, burgundy pillows had been placed behind her, where she had rested her head moments ago.

Brianna looked down at the clothes she was wearing, which were quite comfortable. The sweater was a dark gray and had a V-neck. Around the neck was a white stripe with a blue stripe on either side. The pants that she wore looked black in the light from the fire.

Brianna looked around, spotting a table, next to the couch, which had a cup of steaming liquid sitting on it. There was a note beside it. Brianna turned her body, which felt immensely better, and picked up the note.

_When you awake, drink this. It will help you regain your strength. When you feel ready to move, just come into the sitting room, which is just through the double-doors behind you._

Brianna set down the note and picked up the mug. It smelled pleasantly of herbs. _What if it's poison?_ Brianna immediately shut out that stupid notion. _Of course not, what are you thinking! Think, Brianna; if these people were trying to poison you, they would have done so earlier, or they would have just left you in the snow._

After that realization, Brianna lifted the cup to her lips and drank deeply. It tasted very sweet and the hot liquid felt good. Almost instantly, strength did, indeed, begin to return to her. She set down the cup and swung her legs off the couch. Holding onto the armrest for support, she stood shakily. She looked down at her feet, realizing that she was only wearing thick gray socks, but they were very soft.

There was a beautiful carpet in front of the fireplace, on which she stood. Gold fringes lined either end. Wherever she was, these people were certainly not poor. Brianna had never seen this much wealth in one room in her entire life. _Where am I?_

Brianna cautiously stepped towards the two large, oak doors in the back of the room, the fireplace behind her. As she neared the doors, they swung open. Her eyes widened and she knew that she should feel very nervous, but for some reason, she was very calm. It was almost as if she had seen doors open like this before, but that would be impossible. She had spent her entire life in the apartment, with her parents. _Her parents! Oh no, they must be so worried!_ Brianna began to feel horrible._ I need to find them! First I've got to find these people that helped me. They've got to have a phone._

Brianna looked around the large room that she had just entered. The high ceiling was arched and a large Gothic window stood on the far wall. She gasped quietly, looking at the view. The snow was lightly falling now and a large yard spread out, covered with sparkling white snow. There were snow-covered evergreens off to the left and right. And in the distance were snow-capped mountains, which had a slightly bluish tint to them in the sun. _It's so beautiful!_ _But this is definitely not New York…_

"I see you have awakened. Good." Brianna looked over to the right where another fireplace was situated. There was a dark green, plush couch facing the fireplace and sitting in a high-backed chair was a man in a long black robe, reading a book, which he had just laid down on his lap. He had dark brown hair and wore half-moon glasses. He smiled, and Brianna knew that he was a bit older than he looked. He stood, placing the book down on the chair. He was very tall, nearly two heads taller. "I am Gabriel Conner, and this is my home," he said warmly in a British accent. Brianna immediately felt at ease with the man and she smiled.

"My name is Brianna Olsen. You found me?" she asked.

He nodded. "Indeed, we did. I am glad that we found you when we did, or I do not think you would be standing here, talking," he said with a smile.

"No, I don't think so."

"Oh, good, you are awake! We were so worried!" someone exclaimed in a British accent. Brianna turned around to see a woman standing behind her. The woman was about a head taller than Brianna and had a very warm smile on her face. Her hair was styled neatly and she wore an emerald-green robe. There were few lines on her face, and Brianna couldn't tell how old the woman was, but she couldn't have been that old. The woman's bright blue eyes sparkled in the light from the fire. "I see that my old school things fit you nicely. Do you feel any better?"

Brianna nodded. "Oh yeah, and much warmer." _They seem nice…but I don't know them…maybe if I just play along, it'll be okay. They are, after all, strangers. Who knows what could happen?_

The woman smiled. "Good. I am Sarah Conner, and I see you have met Gabriel."

"Sarah, this is Brianna," Gabriel introduced. Sarah nodded.

"That view is amazing. Where are we?" Brianna asked, motioning to the outside view.

Gabriel walked over to Sarah and the both looked at her, smiling. "Well, Brianna, you are at the Conner Estate," Gabriel said. "We found you nearly frozen to death, and we brought you here to nurse you back to health."

Brianna nodded. "Thank you so much. You've been really great, but I should probably be getting home. My parents will be very worried. Do you have a phone I could use?"

"Oh, of course they will be worried," Sarah said, nodding. "We will get you home very soon. There are a few matters that we must attend to currently, but then we will take you home. But I'm afraid we don't have a phone here. We do have the post, however, and you could write a letter to them. It will be sent immediately and I promise, it will reach your parents quickly."

Brianna opened her mouth to say that she had to get home immediately, but then she closed her mouth. These people were being very kind and generous, though she was quite confused. _They don't have a phone? But they're so rich, I'd think that would be a given. And how does she know the letter will get to my family so fast? Must be some sort of fast mail or something that rich people use._ All she said was, "Thank you."

Gabriel smiled. "Here we are." He walked over to a table that was sitting in between two tall mahogany bookshelves. He motioned for her to come over and she did. He gestured to a piece of parchment and a quill. "Write to them and we will have it sent off immediately."

Brianna looked at the items curiously. _No pens or pencils? Huh, maybe this was the way rich people write to each other._ "Thank you." She quickly dipped the quill in the ink bottle and began writing on the parchment.

_Mom, Dad, Maria, Terrance,_

_I'll be home soon. Don't worry, I'm fine. Gabriel and Sarah Conner, two really nice people, are letting me stay in their manor at the time being. They have some things to do at the moment, but they said that they would bring me home as soon as possible. So please, don't worry. I'm healthy, clothed, and I feel really comfortable here. I'm not sure where exactly I am; the state, I mean; but I don't think it's really that far. The view is amazing though. Mom, you'd go wild to see it. There are mountains! It's so beautiful! Well, I'm going to get going, but I just wanted to let you know I'm fine and I'm safe, so that you didn't worry. See you soon!_

_Love,_

_Brianna_

Brianna blew on the parchment, the ink drying rather quickly. There were quite a few splotches from the ink on the parchment, but she could still read what she had written. She rolled it up and handed it to Gabriel. "We will send this," he said, smiling.

"Thank you." Brianna looked around. "I really don't know what to say. This place is so amazing."

Sarah smiled. "I am glad that you find it attractive. We try to keep it very nice."

"You do a great job."

"Thank you," Sarah said, smiling. "Well, I am sure that you are very hungry. Come with me and I will fix you something to eat." Brianna nodded and Sarah looked at Gabriel. "Once you have owled that letter, come join us in the dining hall."

Gabriel nodded. "I will."

"'Owled'?" Brianna asked in confusion.

"She means the Owl Post," Gabriel said. At the look of bewilderment on Brianna's face, he continued, "The Owl Post is how we send our letters."

"Oh," Brianna said. _Huh, weird, but I guess that's what rich people use to send their letters. Strange name though; Owl Post. I guess you learn new things every day._

With a nod, Gabriel left the sitting room and Sarah motioned for Brianna to follow her. Brianna walked behind Sarah as they walked through a large entrance hall. High above was a crystal chandelier and a large, winding, marble staircase wound upwards from the center of the room. The floor was tiled, and they shone. Two large, double oak doors stood in front of the stairs, obviously the entrance into the manor, with two large Gothic windows framing them. Brianna followed Sarah past the stairs and through a large archway into a large dining hall. The walls were covered with tapestries, some of people, and some just for decoration. Down the middle of the long oak table was a bough of evergreens with sparkling ornaments on it. Another crystal chandelier hung above the table. High backed chairs lined the tables with red, plush seats and at the far end of the table two settings had been placed, each with steaming bowls of soup. Sarah led Brianna over to these settings and they sat down.

"How did you get this soup here already?" Brianna asked.

Sarah smiled. "I knew that we would be eating soon, so I made sure there was food ready."

Brianna nodded and lifted her spoon, dipping it into the creamy soup. It smelled wonderful, and when she tasted the soup, it tasted as good as it smelled. "This is delicious!" Brianna exclaimed.

"Yes, our cooks can do wonders," Sarah said, smiling.

Brianna's eyebrows rose. "Cooks? You have more than one?"

Sarah smiled. "Yes, love. We have many occasions where we must have many dishes made very promptly, so we have more than one cook."

Brianna nodded, her amazement clearly written all over her face. _Cooks! Wow, that's so cool!_ "How do you clean all this?"

Sarah laughed. "Others clean the manor, Brianna. With work and all, we do not have much time to clean or cook."

"Wow." If her eyes could have widened further, they would have. _My god…this is just… unreal._

Sarah smiled.

"I noticed your accents. Are you British?"

Sarah nodded. "Yes, we are. You are very observant."

Brianna smiled, slightly blushing. "I just noticed your accents."

Sarah smiled warmly. "Well, I hope you make yourself right at home."

Brianna nodded. "I will. Thanks so much. I really appreciate this."

"May I ask, and I do not mean to intrude," Sarah said slowly, "but why were you out there in the cold, and with barely enough clothes to cover a hand, much less a girl."

"I, well –" Brianna said uncomfortably. These people were nice, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to tell them her whole life story.

"If it makes you uncomfortable, love, you do not have to tell me. You have to forgive my curiosity. Gabriel says that I have enough curiosity to fill the entire manor," Sarah said, smiling.

Brianna laughed. She suddenly had a sense of ease again and somehow, she knew she could trust these people. "Well, you see, I live in what you would call the slums of New York City, but its home to me. . ."

Brianna began to tell Sarah everything that had happened up until the day that they had found her. When she was finished, Sarah sat back.

"That is quite a story, Brianna," Sarah said.

"You don't think I'm a weirdo or anything, do you?" Brianna asked, suddenly scared that Sarah would throw her out on the street.

Sarah laughed. "Of course I do not think you are a 'weirdo' as you so bluntly put it; rather, I don't think it is something to fear at all."

"My parents don't think so. They think I have to go see Dr. Nemon. I don't want to be some stupid lab rat!"

"Of course not, love. Do not worry, your parents are just doing what they think is the right thing to do. I think that you should go along with it for now," Sarah said, a smile on her face that looked like she was hiding something, but Brianna wasn't about to accuse her of anything.

"But what if they lock me up?"

"They will not, I can assure you of that. I know Dr. Nemon, and he will know exactly what the reason is behind all those odd occurrences."

Brianna looked at her curiously. "You know Dr. Nemon?"

Sarah nodded, smiling that secretive smile again. "Yes, very well."

"Well, I guess, if you're sure he's not going to put me in a padded cell, I'll go along with what my parents want me to do."

Sarah smiled. "You are a good child, Brianna. Your parents are very lucky to have a child like you."

Brianna could feel her face turn red. "Thank you," she managed.

"Well, I have an idea. After you finish your soup, we'll go for a ride together around the grounds, shall we?"

Brianna nodded, grinning. "Cool." She quickly finished the delicious soup, which warmed her completely.

Sarah took her into what had to be Sarah's bedroom and opened the closet. She pulled out a dark blue robe and handed it to Brianna. It was very heavy and looked warm. "Thanks," Brianna said.

"Do not mention it, Brianna," Sarah said, pulling on a thicker emerald-green robe. She handed Brianna a pair of boots and gray gloves, and Brianna put them on. Sarah pulled on similar boots and gloves, and they headed down the spiral stairs to a back door. As they walked down the long hall, Brianna could have sworn that she had seen one of the pictures move, but that was impossible. She figured that she still had to be getting over the shock of the cold, but she wasn't sure. She didn't say anything to Sarah, because then Sarah would think she was a loony for sure.

They stepped outside into the lightly falling snow. The air was crisp and cool and it felt refreshing. Brianna took a deep breath and smiled. She followed Sarah through a path in the sparkling snow around a corner of the manor and what she saw made her eyes go wide.

Just around the corner was an open carriage with two gleaming white horses harnessed to it. "Wow," was all Brianna could say. She chuckled. "I seem to be saying that a lot."

Sarah smiled and walked over to the carriage. She motioned for Brianna to climb up, and she did. She sat down on the comfortable red cushioned seat, leaning back against the arched back of the carriage. Sarah sat down across from her, her back to the horses. She made a very soft sound and the carriage began moving. Brianna's eyes widened. "You don't even have to lead them?"

Sarah smiled. "No. They are very well trained."

"I'd say. That's really cool."

They sat in silence as the carriage pulled out into an open field. Brianna looked behind her at the manor and her eyes widened. "Wow," she said softly. The stone manor spread out behind them; a few towers spaced around the manor. The windows shone in the bright sunlight. It was so beautiful and so huge! _I have never seen anything like this in my entire life! It's so cool! If we're still in New York, well, we can't be. There's no possible way something like this could exist anywhere near the city. Maybe it's by the mountains. That would explain why I can see mountains in the distance._

"What city is this in?" Brianna asked, turning back to face Sarah.

Sarah shifted uncomfortably. "Well, you see, we are not in a specific city. You could say we are in the country."

"Oh," Brianna said, wondering why Sarah was so uncomfortable about saying where they were, but she didn't press it. They had been kind enough to take Brianna in; Brianna didn't want to make them uncomfortable and regret that they had helped her. "So, when will Gabriel be back?" she asked, changing the subject.

Sarah immediately looked more comfortable. She smiled. "He will be back for supper. He had to go into the city for work."

Brianna nodded. "What does he do?"

"He's a doctor."

Brianna's eyebrows lifted. "That's cool. So he works in New York City?"

"Yes. Are you cold at all?"

"What? Oh, not really."

"No matter." Sarah reached down and opened a small compartment underneath her seat. She pulled out a tray that had two steaming cups on it. Brianna's eyes widened. _Where did that come from?_ Sarah smiled and held out the tray.

"How did you do that?" Brianna asked, taking the steaming cup of cocoa. Sarah just smiled, taking her cup, and putting the tray down on the seat next to her. Brianna shook her head, smiling. "You keep surprising me."

Sarah smiled. "Do you like your cocoa?"

Brianna took a sip of the warm liquid. "Delicious."

"Good." Sarah took a sip of her own cocoa. "It is a secret recipe, tuned over the years to be even better."

Brianna smiled. "Well, I think it's perfect."

Sarah smiled. "Thank you."

"Welcome," Brianna said, taking a sip of her cocoa. She was quiet as she looked at the woods that they had just entered. The snow had fallen perfectly, so that it covered every single branch. It was very magical.

As they came out of the forest, they passed by a large open field. The mountains loomed in the distance, much closer now than before. The snow had stopped falling and everything shone in the bright sunlight. Brianna sighed, leaning back. _It's so calming here. I wish I could stay here forever and bring my family too.._ Then she scolded herself. _Don't think thoughts that will never come true. Just more dreams that you wish would come true. _

"You are really lucky. I would give anything to live in a place like this," Brianna said.

"Yes, we are," Sarah said, looking at the mountains. "It is quite beautiful."

As they rounded a corner of the manor, the mountains disappeared out of sight. The carriage stopped. "So soon?"

Sarah smiled. "It is close to supper time. Gabriel should be back."

Brianna glanced back at the edge of the woods and thought she saw something flash through them. She looked closer and watched as a white horse galloped out of the woods, heading towards the open field. _Was that a – no, it couldn't have been. I could have sworn that that was a unicorn, but that was impossible . . . wasn't it?_

"Sarah –" Brianna said, but the horse, or whatever it had been, was gone.

"Yes?"

"Never mind," Brianna said softly. She turned around and hopped out of the carriage. Sarah was already down. As they walked back to the manor, Brianna looked back at the horse. "What about the horses?"

"We have someone to take care of them."

Brianna nodded and they walked into the manor. She had figured that they'd have someone take care of the horses as well, since they had everything else taken care of. A wonderful aroma filled her nostrils and Brianna smiled. "Dinner smells really good."

"Let us hope it tastes just as good," Sarah said, smiling.

Brianna laughed. "I hope so."

Brianna followed Sarah to the entrance hall where they deposited their thick robes and boots, hanging them up in a closet. Brianna followed Sarah into the dining hall. Gabriel was sitting at the end and he stood when they walked in. They walked over to him and the three of them took their seats, one on either side of Gabriel. Empty plates and goblets sat at their places and empty bowls, a pitcher, and plates were scattered around before them.

"You have to close your eyes," Gabriel said, smiling.

Brianna smiled and closed her eyes obediently. The delicious aroma came back in full force and Brianna struggled with her patience, wanting to open her eyes. Finally, after what seemed a life time, Gabriel said, "You can open them now."

Brianna opened her eyes and gasped. Where once stood empty dishes, now they were filled with food. "Wow!" she exclaimed.

"Ladies first," Gabriel said.

Brianna grinned and scooped some mashed potatoes out onto her plate. Then she took some steak, and some carrots. She poured an orange liquid into her goblet and took a sip. "Pumpkin juice?" she asked.

Sarah nodded, smiling. "Yes, very good for you."

"Tastes good," Brianna said, taking another sip.

Gabriel and Sarah laughed and helped themselves to the food.

"Well," Gabriel said, after they had been eating for a while, "Dominic should arrive home from school tomorrow."

"Dominic?" Brianna asked.

"He's our son," Sarah explained.

"Oh." Brianna smiled. "I'll get to meet him?"

"Yes," Gabriel said, smiling. "He should be here when you awake tomorrow morning."

"Where does he go to school?"

"It is a private school in England," Sarah said.

"Cool. How old is he?"

"Twelve. He is in his second year," Gabriel said.

"Only two years older than me."

"You are ten, then?" Sarah asked.

"I will be in a few days. Actually," Brianna realized. "I'll be ten tomorrow."

"We will be sure to get you home, then," Gabriel said. "You should be home by the evening."

"Thank you," Brianna said. Then she yawned.

"Oh dear, I think she is tired already," Sarah said, smiling.

"Yeah, I think so," Brianna said.

"Well, no wonder. You have had a very exhausting day," Gabriel said.

"Once we are finished here, I'll show you to your room," Sarah said.

"Thanks." Brianna finished her dinner and drained the last of her pumpkin juice.

After dinner, Brianna followed Sarah up the stairs and into a large room. On the far wall there were two glass doors that opened out onto a balcony. Much to Brianna's delight, the view was of the mountains. Next to the doors was a large fireplace, with a fire roaring in the hearth, making room nice and warm. A large, four-poster bed was off to the right with dark blue drapes hung around it. A small lamp let out a soft glow from her nightstand. To her left were a closet, a large dresser, and a table with a mirror on the wall above it.

"There are clothes for you to sleep in on the bed," Sarah said.

Brianna smiled and gave Sarah a hug. "Thank you so much, for everything."

Sarah smiled as they pulled back. "You are most welcome. Now, you get some sleep and just come downstairs when you awake. Feel free to use any of the clothes in the closet." Brianna nodded and Sarah left the room.

Brianna walked over to the bed and pulled back one of the drapes. She picked up the dark purple pajamas, took off her own clothes, and put them on. She smiled, closing her eyes at the feel of them on her skin. They were so warm and silky, she felt as though she had stepped into a dream. She set down her clothes on the nightstand and climbed into the large bed, blowing out the flame in the lamp and closed the drapes. She soon fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Downstairs, Gabriel and Sarah stood in the sitting room, arguing. "Sarah, I do not think it was wise to take her outside!"

"Gabriel, be reasonable. You-Know-Who is not going to come here. He is much too busy elsewhere, I am sure of it."

"You do not know that for sure. Besides, if anyone found out that we had a Muggle sleeping upstairs, exactly _how_ would we have explained it? The Minister of Magic was supposed to come for dinner tonight and I had to make up an excuse because of Brianna."

"Well you did not have to take her here, you know."

"What else would I have done? I was not about to let that poor girl freeze to death."

"Then stop complaining. It is safe here."

"For now."

"Gabriel, there is something about this girl. In the past week, several strange things have happened to her. First, she becomes angry in her school, and the windows shatter. Then she is attacked by 'dodge-balls', as she calls them, at school and they burst into flame. Then she is stressed and a glass breaks, and after that, she reached into a fire and formed images, and barely got burned. She only got hurt because her mother startled her. I think there is much more to Brianna then you seem to see."

"What are you saying?"

"I should think it's obvious, Gabriel. Brianna is a witch."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: all JKR's etc etc, you know the drill :)**

**A/N: I want to first thank those of you that have reviewed.  
**

**As for this chapter, a new character is introduced, hence the title. I am interested in your thoughts on him and of the chapter.**

**Brianna learns a little more about the Conners and I'm interested in any theories you may have**

**Brianna: I'm not a Mary-Sue! I swear**

**(grins) What can I say...my characaters are defensive ;)**

**So, as always, reviews are welcomed and appreciated**

**

* * *

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**Chapter Four**

**-Dominic Conner -**

The sun rose, a red blur on the horizon, stretched its fingers over the tops of the mountains, sweeping down through the woods and then finally, lit up the east side of the manor, streaming in through the windows.

On the outskirts of Birmingham, there was an old abandoned train station. A lone boy stood on the platform, having recently been dropped off by the Knight Bus. A large trunk sat next to him and a cage containing a tawny owl sat on top. He walked up to a seemingly innocent-looking brick wall, carting the trunk and cage behind him, and stepped through onto the grounds of a large estate. The land he now stood on was unplottable by Muggles and the only way to reach these lands was the barrier at the old train station. The boy looked up at the manor and began making his way up the long path.

* * *

Brianna stretched, her covers slipping to her ankles, yawning as she pushed her arms above her head. She blinked and gradually opened her eyes, seeing that the drapes around her bed were highlighted with the morning sun. Her heart raced as she bolted up. _Where am I?_ Then she lay back down, remembering the previous day's events. She smiled. She wished she could stay here, but she knew that she couldn't. She would be going back home tonight. 

Brianna sat up and pulled the drapes apart. Climbing out of her bed, she walked over to the balcony doors, noticing that the fire was still burning and a tray sat on a table next to the fireplace with a goblet, some toast, and some fruit. Someone must have come earlier, taken care of the fire, and brought up her breakfast. She picked up the orange and smiled, opening the balcony doors and stepping outside. A cool breeze rustled her long hair and the silky pajamas that she wore. She placed her hands on the rail, looking out over the woods and to the distant mountains, taking a deep breath, the cool air filling her lungs. She was really going to miss this place.

She peeled back the skin of the orange and pulled off a wedge. She bit into it, savoring the juicy flavor. _This place, it seems so, I don't know, right. It seems really familiar, like I've been here before, or to a place similar, but that's impossible. Of course, things I once thought were impossible seem to be happening to me: shattering glass, fire and ashes. What is happening to me?_

She walked back into the room, closing the doors. She finished the orange and ate the toast, draining the pumpkin juice. She set the empty goblet down and walked over to the closet, opening it and shifting through the various colored robes, shirts, and pants. A black robe, with some sort of emblem on it, caught her attention. She pulled it out, looking at the stitched emblem. It looked to be some sort of crest. There was a large 'H' in the middle, with four sections: a snake, a badger, a lion, and an eagle. "Huh, interesting," she said.

She put the robe back and pulled out a dark purple turtleneck. It felt very soft to her touch. Placing the turtleneck over her arm, she looked through the pants, selecting a pair of black ones. Then she looked down at the bottom of the closet where several pairs of black shoes sat there, all with gray socks lying on them. She picked up a pair, along with the socks, and walked over to her bed, shutting the door with her foot. She quickly slipped into the clothing and folded her pajamas, laying them at the end of the bed.

Heading out the door, she entered a long corridor. Tapestries lined the hall and as she walked towards the steps, she could have sworn one of them said, "Good morning," but of course that was nonsense. Tapestries didn't talk.

She hurried down the spiral steps and nearly ran over someone walking by the bottom. "Whoa there, is there a fire I don't know about?" a laughing voice asked. Brianna looked up into a grinning face and had to mentally hit herself to keep her mouth from dropping open, though her eyes widened just a bit.

The boy, nearly a head taller than her, had short brown hair and the bluest eyes she had ever seen. He had a very dignified face, with high cheekbones and all, and was very handsome. She could feel a bit of blush seeping into her cheeks and she knew he probably thought she was very silly.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Brianna said, stepping back, trying to get the blush to go away.

He shrugged. "It's alright. You must be Brianna."

She nodded, forcing herself to swallow and speak. "Yes, I am. Who are you?" Then she mentally hit herself. _Now he's going to think I'm rude._

The boy smiled brightly, not seeming to notice her nervousness. "I'm Dominic Conner."

Seeing the friendly smile put her a bit more at ease and she let out the breath she had unconsciously been holding. "You just came back from school, right?" she asked, finding her voice steadier than she thought it would be.

Dominic nodded. "Yes, Hog – I mean, my school has let us out for the winter holiday. I'll be going back in two weeks. What about you?"

"The same."

Dominic flashed his smile once again. "So, I hear my parents found you in the middle of a snow storm."

She nodded, still a bit nervous, but it was starting to fade. "They did. Thank god they found me; I don't know what would have happened otherwise."

"Yes, most definitely." He smiled a bit wider, a bit of excitement in his eyes. "So you live in New York City?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Can you tell me about it?"

Brianna smiled, finally, and could feel her butterflies dissipating. She was beginning to like Dominic more every second, for he really made her feel at ease, though she couldn't quite place why. "Why don't we go sit down somewhere, instead of standing here on the stairs?"

Dominic laughed. "Right, of course. Did you eat breakfast?" Brianna nodded. "Why don't we go sit in the den, then?"

"Okay." She smiled, making a sweeping motion with her arm. "Lead the way."

Dominic laughed and she followed him through the sitting room and into the room she had been in when she first awakened here. They sat down on the couch in front of the fire. "What's that a picture of?" Brianna asked, pointing to the tapestry above the fireplace.

"Oh, that? It's a picture of my school," Dominic said, looking up at where she was pointing.

"Cool," Brianna said, smiling. "What's your school like?"

He looked back at her, smiling. "It's brilliant. We study many different subjects, and we play my favorite sport: Quidditch." Then Dominic's eyes widened. "Shouldn't have said that," Dominic muttered quietly, so quietly that Brianna barely heard him.

She ignored this and asked, "What's Quidditch?"

"It's a sport where you throw a ball around and try to get it through hoops."

"Like soccer then."

"I suppose. Well then," Dominic said, changing the subject, "what's your school like?"

_Uncomfortable subject…I'll avoid that then. _"It's alright, I guess. The subjects are okay, but they're too easy for me. I spend a lot of time in the school library, reading books. That's one of my favorite things to do, other than sit in the Tower."

"The Tower?"

"It's a place at my house where I can go to be alone. I have my books up there and that's where I do most of my reading."

"I have a place like that. I'll show it to you later, if you'd like."

Brianna smiled. "I'd love that."

"So you like reading?"

Brianna nodded. "Oh yeah, a lot. Do you read much?"

Dominic shrugged. "What with my school work and all, I don't have much time to read for fun, but I do on occasion. What sort of books do you like to read?"

"Fantasy, mostly. I love books about magic."

Dominic smiled as if he wanted to say something, but couldn't. "Well, you know, there is some truth to some of those books."

"Really?" Brianna asked, her eyebrows lifting. "You mean stuff like that actually exists?"

Dominic shrugged. "Possibly. Well," he said, standing. "I have something I want to show you, but then I'm going to finish my homework. It's unbelievable," Dominic said, shaking his head. "You would think that the professors would be kind and let us have a break over the holiday, but instead, they pile even more on us."

Brianna laughed. "I know. I think teachers think that we have no lives except to do homework."

Dominic smiled. "Exactly. Well, come on. Follow me."

He stood and she hesitated momentarily before standing as well. _Can't hurt to follow. Wonder what he's going to show me._ She followed him out of the room and up the spiral stairs, down the corridor, past her room, and nearly to the end where they stopped in front of two large doors.

He looked at her and smiled. "Close your eyes." She looked at him curiously, but obeyed. She felt him take her hands and lead her forward. He let go of her hands and she stopped. "Okay," he said.

She opened her eyes and gasped, looking around at the huge room. The ceiling was so high that she could barely see the top and the walls were covered from floor to ceiling in shelves and rows of books. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed. "There have to be thousands of books here!"

Dominic grinned. "I thought you'd like it."

Brianna looked at him, grinning. "Like it? I love it!" She looked at the huge Gothic windows that were placed around the library, letting in the sun, her eyes following the curve of the room, down at the plush red carpet beneath her feet. Then, she looked over at the large, comfortable-looking armchairs that were placed around with unlit candle lamps sitting on tables beside them. "This is so cool! You know, I don't think I'm going to want to leave this room ever, much less the manor." She turned to Dominic and hugged him. He tensed a little, and then gave her a quick hug. "Thank you so much!" Then she blushed. _Now he'll think I was being too clingy or something…I don't know._

"Don't mention it," he said, smiling. His smile put her nerves a bit more at ease. "This is my favorite place to be. It's nice and quiet. You can really just curl up in one of the chairs and place yourself in another world. It's quite amazing, actually." He sighed. "Well, I'd better get an early start on my homework," he said and chuckled. "If I can manage to finish it right off the start, then I may actually be able to relax."

Brianna smiled. "Thank you again. I know that once I leave tonight, we probably won't see each other again."

"Don't worry," Dominic said, smiling. "We'll still be able to keep in touch. With the post and all."

Brianna nodded. "Great."

"I'll see you later," Dominic said. He turned and left the library, leaving Brianna to gaze around in awe. _A dream come true! All these books! I'll never get to read them all! Where to begin?_

She walked over to one shelf and ran her finger over the titles. Finally she stopped on a book called, _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. She pulled it out and walked over to chair. She opened the leather-bound book and looked through the table of contents. Her finger stopped on a chapter about Unicorns. _Unicorns!_ She opened to that page and began reading.

_**Unicorn**_

_The unicorn is a beautiful beast found throughout the forests of northern Europe. It is a pure white, horned horse when fully grown, though foals are initially golden, and turn silver before achieving maturity. The unicorn's horn, blood, and hair all have highly magical properties. It generally avoids human contact, is more likely to allow a witch to approach it than a wizard, and is so fleet of foot that it is very difficult to capture._

She smiled thoughtfully. _Well then… that couldn't have been a unicorn that I saw earlier…because they're in Europe, and I'm still in America. And unicorns don't really exist…_ She frowned slightly. _Maybe…_ She looked down at the book and flipped a few pages, sitting back to read about some more magical beasts.

* * *

Gabriel found her later that evening, completely absorbed in the book that she was reading. It was about the history of magic and it was very interesting. "I see you have found the library," he said, chuckling.

Brianna looked up and smiled. "Dominic showed it to me earlier."

Gabriel smiled. "This is a wonderful place, to be assured. I just came to tell you that supper is ready."

"Okay. Thanks."

"You know. If you wish, you may take any of these books back with you."

"Really?" Brianna asked, her eyes widening.

"Really," Gabriel said, laughing. His eyes twinkled behind his glasses. "There are so many books here, that I still have not read all of them."

"Thank you so much!" Brianna cried, leaping up. She ran over to Gabriel and hugged him.

He patted her on the back. "You are most welcome," Gabriel said, laughing.

She pulled back, grinning, feeling blush in her cheeks, but it was from the excitement. She no longer felt uncomfortable around Gabriel or Sarah, they were so easy going. "This is so cool!"

Gabriel smiled. "Well, after supper, you may come back in here and select the books you wish to take with you. Then I will take you home." Brianna nodded, looking down, a bit sadly. "What's wrong?"

Brianna looked up at him. "I can't wait to see my family, but I'll miss this place. I really feel at home here."

Gabriel smiled. "I am glad that you like it here, but you do have to go home. Your parents are waiting for you."

Brianna nodded. "Oh, I know. I just hate to leave."

"Brianna, I am sure that you will be back here someday." They stood in silence for a moment, and then Gabriel spoke up, "Let us go to supper, shall we?"

Brianna smiled. "Sure."

* * *

Brianna took a bite of her chicken, listening as Dominic told them about school. Brianna had sat down in the seat next to Gabriel at the long table, and Dominic was on her other side, opposite of Sarah.

"And, you wouldn't believe the new DADA professor. He's wicked!" Dominic exclaimed, taking a bite of corn.

She looked at him curiously. _DADA? Maybe it's a new high school class that I haven't heard of.. _But didn't interrupt, taking another bite of chicken.

Gabriel smiled. "What is his name?"

"Professor Lupin. He really knows the subject though, and we've even been able to have some hands-on activities."

"That sounds wonderful, love," Sarah said, smiling.

"It is," Dominic said, taking a sip of his pumpkin juice.

"How are you doing in your studies?" Gabriel asked.

Dominic shrugged. "As well as I can. Hermione Granger, of course, is still head of her class, and I think she's top of the school right now. Professor Snape and that blasted . . ." Dominic glanced at Brianna, his eyes wide. "Um . . ." He pursed his lips, trying to think. "The, uh . . . Chemistry class is the only one that is really holding me back." Dominic grew slightly angry. "How does he expect us to memorize all that stuff?"

"Doesn't sound like fun," Brianna commented.

"It isn't," Dominic said grudgingly. Then he brightened. "But guess what? I made the house team!"

Gabriel and Sarah beamed. "That is wonderful!" Sarah exclaimed.

"Exceptional! Especially since this is only your second year. My son, on the house team!" Gabriel said proudly.

"Is it really hard to get on the team?" Brianna asked, looking over at Dominic as she sipped her juice.

"Usually only third-years and above make the house teams, and even then, it is very hard," Sarah explained.

Brianna's eyes widened as she looked at Sarah. "Wow."

"What position are you playing?" Gabriel asked.

"Chaser," Dominic declared proudly.

"What does a Chaser do?" Brianna asked, looking back at Dominic.

Dominic looked at her. "Chasers are the ones who control the Quaffle and try to get it through the hoops."

"The Quaffle is the ball?"

Dominic nodded. "Right."

She nodded, smiling. "Cool." She continued to eat.

Dominic looked back at his parents. "Have you heard anything more on Sirius?"

Gabriel shook his head. "He is still out there, making trouble, I am sure. I just do not see how he could have escaped from Azkaban."

"Azkaban?" Brianna asked, looking up from her food.

Gabriel looked at her. "It is a highly guarded prison in England."

"Oh, so you're talking about that guy that escaped? I saw the article about him in the copy of the _Daily Telegraph_ that Fred had at the store."

Gabriel, Sarah, and Dominic looked at her. "Figures he'd make trouble for everyone," Dominic muttered.

"No one is supposed to be able to get past the guards there," Sarah said, shaking her head. "I do not see how he could have done it."

"The guards are really tough?" Brianna asked.

"The people that are put in Azkaban go mad, Brianna," Gabriel said. "After awhile in there, they usually do not have much of a mind left to do much of anything, much less escape. Sirius Black has been in Azkaban for twelve years, so you would think he could not escape. Well, obviously, we were wrong and now he is out there, making trouble."

"He probably went back to –" Dominic stopped at a look from his parents. He shrugged. "It's just possible, that's all."

Gabriel gave him a stern look. "I know it is possible, and if it happens, we are all in serious trouble, but I suggest that you do not speak of that here at supper."

Dominic looked down and began cutting some more of his chicken. Gabriel and Sarah began eating again, so Brianna just focused on a very interesting piece of rice. The rest of the dinner was silent.

* * *

When they had finished dinner, Gabriel took Brianna back to the library where she picked out several books, including _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. As they were about to leave, Sarah and Dominic came into the entrance hall and Sarah handed Brianna a dark blue robe. "This is one of the warmer cloaks. I hope you enjoy it," she said, smiling.

"Thank you!" Brianna exclaimed, grinning. She hugged Sarah. "Thank you so much for everything."

"As long as you stay in touch," Sarah said, pulling back, smiling. "We will owl you shortly, and then just send your reply."

Brianna nodded. "Sure." She looked at Dominic, who smiled.

"I'll send you a letter," he said.

Brianna smiled. "Great. I can't wait."

"We have a long ways to travel. We had better be going," Gabriel said from behind them.

"Right," Sarah said, nodding to Gabriel and looked back at Brianna. "Goodbye, Brianna."

"Bye," Brianna said, giving Sarah and Dominic a small wave as she followed Gabriel out of the manor. A fancy car sat out in the front and they climbed in.

* * *

They drove for what seemed like hours and as the nightscape blurred together, Brianna felt her eyelids beginning to droop. Soon, she was fast asleep. .

When she woke up, she was in the back of a taxi cab and she bolted up, looking around, her heart pounding, frantic. "Where's Gabriel?" Brianna asked, her eyes wide.

"Who?" the Mexican driver asked, glancing in the rearview mirror.

"Gabriel. He was the man that was with me."

"Oh, you mean the man that called for the cab. Yeah, he left. He just told me where to take you. Already paid for."

Brianna didn't say anything as she was breathing a huge sigh of relief. She looked out the window as the buildings of New York City passed them by. The bright lights were familiar and welcoming and as they drove, she could feel her heart steadying. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass, closing her eyes.

She felt the taxi stop, and opened her eyes from the nap. Looking out, she saw that they had reached her neighborhood. The taxi stopped outside the apartment complex and she climbed out. "Thank you," she said, nodding to the driver.

The cab driver smiled. "No problem. You have a nice Christmas."

"Thanks. You too." She closed the door and the taxi drove away. She looked up at the complex, beaming. "Home!" She hugged her cloak tightly, along with the bag of books and ran into the complex, hurrying up the stairs.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: All property of JKRowling **

**A/N: Enjoy! Reviews are much appreciated :D I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chpt Apologies ahead of time for some information in this chapter that we already know (Hogwarts and the such). Remember, Brianna doesn't know any of this ;)  
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* * *

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**Chapter Five**

**-A Very Unusual Doctor Visit-**

Brianna burst through the front door. Her parents, who had been sitting on the couch, jumped up and she rushed over to them, dropping the cloak and bag of books by the door. "Momma! Daddy!" she cried, hugging them tightly.

"We were so worried!" her mother cried, hugging her back.

"Thank God you're safe!" her father said, placing a hand on her shoulder before drawing her into a hug.

Brianna pulled back. "I'm so sorry."

"The important thing is that you're back," her mother said, hugging her again, showering her with kisses.

"I'm really sorry I made you worry." Brianna looked at them. "Did you get the letter?"

Her parents nodded. "We did, and we owe them a lot for saving your life," her father said.

"What were you thinking? Running off into a blizzard all by yourself!" her mother asked. "You could have died! You know how dangerous it is out there!"

"What's gotten into you lately, Brianna? First all those things at school, then the incident with the fire, and now you running off." Her father's gaze narrowed. "You're not in trouble, are you?"

"No, of course not!" Brianna knew that her parents would nail her for what had happened. She had never seen her parents this angry before. _Quick mood change_, she thought.

"You worried us sick," her mother said. "Don't ever do that again."

"I won't," Brianna promised.

"You're grounded for the next month," her father said. "You will not leave this house unless we are with you, do you understand?"

"Yes, Daddy." Brianna looked down. "I'm really sorry."

Her father drew her into a tight hug. "I know, but it still doesn't make it right for you to run away."

"I know," Brianna said quietly, hugging her father back. She pulled away and looked at her mother, who hugged her once again.

"I'm just glad you're okay. What with all these gangs hanging around in the alleys," her mother said, finally releasing her.

"Bri! Bri!" Maria and Terrance cried, running out of the bedroom.

Brianna turned and crouched down as Maria and Terrance flew into her arms, nearly knocking her over in the process. "Hi," she said, laughing.

"We missed you!" they cried.

"Can you tell us a story?" Maria asked, pulling back.

"Yes! Story!" Terrance cried, crossing his arms.

Brianna smiled. "Of course." She raised an eyebrow. "But only if you be good and go back to your beds. If you're not asleep when I come in, I'll tell you a story, okay?"

They both nodded, grinning. "Yea! We get a story!" they cried and ran back into the bedroom.

Brianna stood up, smiling softly. She looked at her parents, who were both watching her, hints of smiles on their faces. Her father shook his head. "You're amazing with those two, you know? They really missed you these past few days."

Brianna nodded. "I'm sorry again."

Her father sighed. "I know. Why don't you just go to your room. You can tell us about these strangers tomorrow."

"Okay." Brianna turned, taking her things from by the door and headed into her room.

She smiled when she saw that Maria and Terrance had both fallen asleep on her bed. Staying as quiet as she could, she walked over to her desk and set down the cloak and bag. After changing into her night clothes, she shifted Maria and Terrance so that they had pillows under their heads and crawled into the bed next to them. She looked at them, smiling. They were so cute, her little siblings. She didn't know what she would do without them, or without her parents.

She turned over on her side and closed her eyes, falling into a deep sleep.

Once she was in her room, her parents turned to one another. "Something feels off," her father said. "These people find Brianna, they take her in, feed her, and then just bring her back like that? Who does that anymore?"

"I know you're uneasy, dear," her mother said. "But perhaps…perhaps there are still some good people out there. We shouldn't completely discredit them, not immediately. We do owe them for saving her life."

"Yes. But all this nonsense is going to stop, right now. She's going to see Dr. Nemon tomorrow and he'll put an end to all these strange occurrences."

"I hope."

-------

In the morning, Brianna woke, hoping her parents were a little calmer now. She really did want to share what had happened with Sarah and Gabriel, as well as show her parents the gifts she had received. _They're right though, I shouldn't have run out,_ she thought as she dressed and gathered the gifts into one bag, taking it out to the living room. _It still doesn't mean I like being grounded._

Her parents were in the kitchen having breakfast from the sound of clanking dishes. Brianna could hear Maria and Terrance playing in the other room. Brianna took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen. Her parents looked up when she entered.

"Good morning, Brianna," her mother said, smiling.

_Whew, not mad anymore...well, not yelling at me anymore,_ Brianna thought. "Morning."

"What's that you have there?" her father asked, nodding to the bag in her hands.

"Oh, look what Sarah and Gabriel gave me," she said, showing them the rich cloak and bag of books.

Her parents both looked at the items, wide-eyed. Her mother stood and took the cloak, unfolding it to its full length. The blue cloak shimmered. "This is beautiful!" her mother exclaimed. "What a princely gift. They are very generous in giving you this."

Brianna nodded. "I know, but they are some of the nicest people I have ever met."

Her father took the bag of books, opening it. "Books!" He smiled, looking at Brianna. "Well, now you won't have to empty out the library every day at school," he said with a laugh.

Brianna laughed. "I'll still be going back. But these books will get me through break, and I can't wait to read some of them."

Her father nodded, handing her back the bag. "That's great, dear."

Brianna took the cloak from her mother and set both the items down by her feet. Then she took a seat at the table. "Now you have to tell us what it was like there," her mother said, her eyes sparkling with interest.

Brianna nodded and began telling them about the past two days' events. She didn't mention, however, that she had thought she saw a painting move and a unicorn. They would put her in a padded cell for sure, then. She was just glad they weren't yelling at her anymore and seemed to be in better moods.

When she was finished, her parents sat back. "That manor sounds amazing," her father said.

"I would love to see mountains like that," her mother whispered, a bit in awe.

"These people sound like very good people," her father said, smiling. "Their son sounds like an interesting kid; twelve, you said?"

Brianna nodded. "Yes. He's really nice. They also said that they would write me so I could keep in touch."

Her mother smiled. "That's wonderful." She paused. "This afternoon we're going to see Dr. Nemon, okay?" her mother asked.

Brianna groaned. "Momma, come on."

"Just go to him once, that's all we ask," her father said, giving her a look that showed she really didn't have a choice.

"After that, you don't have to go back. We just want his opinion," her mother assured.

Brianna sighed and nodded. "Alright, as long as it's only this once."

Her parents nodded. "Only once," her father said.

"What time then?" Brianna asked.

"Three."

"Okay." Brianna stood, walking over to the counter and helping herself to some breakfast. Her parents stood, her father leaving the kitchen and her mother going to check on her brother and sister. Brianna ate quickly and went back to her room, taking the bag and cloak with her. She sat down on her bed, pulling out a book and curled up on her bed, beginning to read.

-------

Later that afternoon, Maria and Terrance stayed at their neighbor's apartment, and after a quick bite to eat, Brianna and her parents walked to the subway, taking it to Dr. Nemon's office; this taking about thirty minutes. With three days until Christmas, Dr. Nemon would only be in his office that day.

When they entered the lobby, her father walked up the receptionist. "Hi, I'm John Olsen. We were sent here by the free clinic on 34th street. They had made an appointment with Dr. Nemon for my daughter, Brianna."

The receptionist nodded, and looked at her computer screen. "Yes, we have you down." She looked up at Brianna's father and smiled. "Just wait in the lobby and we'll have someone come down to get her when he's ready."

"Thank you," Brianna's father said. "We really appreciate this. I know this is short notice."

"Dr. Nemon likes helping people and takes patients from many different places. It is not a problem."

Brianna's father swallowed. "How much will this cost?"

The receptionist smiled. "The clinic is paying for the appointment since they sent you here."

Brianna could see the relief clearly written all over her father's face. "Good. Thank you again."

"It's alright."

Her father nodded and walked back to where Brianna and her mother waited. Her father looked at her. "Since we didn't have anytime to celebrate your birthday and ten is a very special age, we're going to take you out to dinner tonight," her father said, smiling.

Brianna grinned. "That's sounds great! Thanks Daddy!" she cried, hugging him.

Her mother smiled. "I know we don't usually celebrate your birthday until Christmas, but we wanted to do this special thing for you. We've saved up the money and we're taking you to La Carte."

Brianna's eyes widened. "La Carte! But that's a really nice restaurant!"

Her parents smiled. "We know, but you deserve something special for turning ten."

"Thank you so much!" she cried, hugging them both.

"Brianna Olsen?" a voice asked.

She pulled away from her parents and looked at the lady in a gray suit that had stepped into the lobby. "Yes?" Brianna said.

"Dr. Nemon will see you now," the lady said.

Brianna glanced back at her parents, who gave her encouraging nods. She sighed and followed the lady through a door and down a hall. Climbing into the elevator, she looked around, a bit wide eyed. She had never rode in an elevator before and when it suddenly moved, she gripped the rail on the wall, scared.

"It's alright," the lady said, smiling down at her. "It's just an elevator."

Brianna nodded. She had read about them but being in one was completely different.

"When you are finished," the lady said, "just come to the elevator, take it to the first floor and go down the hall and out the door you came through."

Brianna nodded. "Okay."

The lady smiled. The elevator stopped and the door opened. There was a little sitting room and a closed door and the lady motioned to the door. "That is his office. Just knock and go in."

"Thank you." The lady nodded and Brianna stepped into the room, hearing the elevator doors shut behind her. Brianna took a deep breath and walked over to the door, knocking once. _Please don't let him think I'm a loony_.

"Come in," a pleasant voice said. She turned the doorknob and opened the door. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, nearly hitting the floor.

"Oh my god, I don't believe it!" she cried. "Gabriel!" She ran to Gabriel, who was standing by the window, and hugged him.

He smiled. "I didn't expect to see you here, but it is a nice surprise," he said. He made a slight motion with his hand, and Brianna heard the door close behind her. Brianna looked around the office, observing the dark wood paneling, and a large floor to ceiling window that had a nice view of the city and of central park. There was a large oak desk that sat in one corner, with a high backed chair behind it, papers were strewn over the top, showing signs of recent activity. Two large, plush chairs sat near each other, right by the window. "Shall we?" he said, motioning to the chairs.

"Sure," Brianna said, removing her coat, and they sat down. Gabriel shifted slightly, smoothing his dark blue robes. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she asked, "Why do you wear robes while you're at work?" Brianna blushed. "I'm sorry, that was rude."

"Not at all," Gabriel said, smiling. "I enjoy questions because I like answering them. That is why I work as a doctor. The robes are very comfortable, and I would much rather wear them then some suit."

Brianna nodded, frowning. "I wouldn't want to wear a suit either," she said, making a face.

Gabriel laughed. "Well, I see that you have made it home safely. I trust that Xavier was pleasant to you?"

"Who?"

"The cab driver."

"Oh," Brianna said, nodding. "Yes, he was fine. You know him?"

"Yes," Gabriel said, smiling. "He is a friend of the family and he is the only driver that we use when we need to go around the city."

Brianna smiled. "Cool."

"Yes, well, as to the reason that you are here. Sarah told me of the odd things that have happened to you currently."

Brianna winced, waiting for him to declare that she be locked up, but that declaration never came. What he said shocked her.

"Brianna, those occurrences are normal."

"What?" Brianna asked in confusion.

Gabriel smiled. "When these things happened, were you very angry, or stressed?"

Brianna nodded. "Yes. When Bobby spilled that stuff on me, it had been on my best shirt and I had been very angry."

"And the windows shattered."

Brianna nodded. "Then they were attacking me with those balls and I got angry again. They wouldn't stop and I just wanted it to go away."

"The balls burst into flame."

"Yes. Then I was really stressed at dinner and that glass broke and then I was sitting in front of the fire, and I just wanted to make myself feel better."

"So you turned to fire to calm you. You made images in the fire that made you feel comforted."

"Yes."

"What were these images?"

"A horse running, a star, and . . . a manor. It was a lot like yours, actually," she added, a thoughtful look on her face.

Gabriel's eyebrows rose. "Really? That is quite interesting. I wonder . . ." he said softly, and then shook his head. "No matter, to the items on hand." He looked at her seriously. "Brianna, you have read stories that deal with magic, correct?"

"Yes," Brianna said slowly, looking at him carefully, not knowing exactly where he was going to take this.

"What I am about to tell you may be quite a shock, but it is true, and I need you to believe me when I tell you that it is perfectly normal at this age." Brianna swallowed, her heart beginning to beat faster. "Brianna, you are a witch."

Brianna's eyes widened and her mouth hung open. Her breath caught up in her throat and she swallowed, hard. "What?" she managed, in a voice a little above a whisper.

"I know this is hard to believe, but it is very true, and very real. According to your birthday, in two years you will receive a letter from a wizarding school." Gabriel smiled. "The headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, is an amazing and brilliant man. I do not think anything escapes him. You will be in good hands there."

"Wait, back up. I'm a witch? You mean with cauldrons, and spells, and a wand, and –"she made a face. "- toads?"

Gabriel laughed. "It is not what you imagine from your stories. Yes, you will have a wand and you will be able to perform spells, but it is nothing bad or anything to be afraid of. Magic has existed for centuries and, although it is not very common, witches and wizards can be born into Muggle families."

"Muggle?"

"The term we use for non-magic folk."

"So you're a wizard?"

Gabriel nodded, smiling. "Yes, I am."

"And that's why you wear robes?" Brianna asked, raising an eyebrow. This was crazy, witches and wizards? This stuff was real?

"Yes. Now, in the wizarding world, there are many witches and wizards that are half and half. Half Muggle, I mean. This in no way diminishes their powers, but some families think that it taints them. These are the families that are what we call pure-bloods. My family is such, but unlike some families, we do not look down on those that are not pure-blooded."

Brianna furrowed her eyebrows, still very confused. "So you're saying that magic is real and that these people actually exist?" She sat back, crossing her arms. "I don't know."

"I know this is a lot to take in at once, but let me show you something." Gabriel stood and walked over to one of the paintings on the wall. He tapped it. "It is alright now, Father; you do not have to stay still any longer." The picture, which was that of a wizened old man wearing black robes, suddenly moved.

Brianna jumped back, her eyes wide. She swallowed. "Did – did that picture just move?"

"Of course I moved!" the man in the picture exclaimed. Brianna's eyes rounded like saucers. "You didn't think I'd sit here all day, did ya?" The man looked at Gabriel. "Son, you can't be shocking children like this." Gabriel just smiled. The man looked back at Brianna. "So you found out you're a witch, eh? What do you think?"

"I – I – uh . . ." Brianna stammered.

The man smiled. "Don't worry, child, you're in safe hands, though sometimes I'm not so sure," the man said, glancing at Gabriel. Brianna looked back and forth between the man and Gabriel.

"Come on, Father," Gabriel said with a laugh, "You would not want to be frightening her now, would you?"

The man smiled, looking at Brianna warmly. "Just listen to Gabe, and you'll be fine. He's a good man and he'll make sure that you get off on the right foot." He sniffed the air, looking around. "I smell something wonderful. I think I might check it out." He looked back at Brianna. "I hope to see you again. You seem like a good kid."

"Thank you," Brianna said slowly, still not quite sure if she was losing her mind or not. She watched as the man walked off the picture, going to who knows where. "He . . . he just disappeared!"

Gabriel looked at her, nodding. "They walk around to different pictures to keep themselves occupied. What else would they do all day?" he asked with a laugh.

Brianna let a small, uneasy laugh escape her lips. "I guess." She shook her head. "This is all so weird." She gave him a side-ways look. "What about the other people who work here? What do they say when they see pictures move?"

Gabriel smiled. "I own this building and all the people that are employed are witches and wizards." Brianna's eyebrows rose. "You see," he said, sitting down, "we have many different jobs available to us. Some work in the Ministry of Magic, as I do. I work in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Others work regular Muggle jobs, such as owning business. I work as a doctor because I enjoy helping people and I also work with the ministry because I love animals. So, you see, there are many opportunities in the wizarding world for everyone."

"Okay," Brianna said slowly. "There's a wizarding world, but how do you go unnoticed by . . . Muggles?"

"Well, we are very careful in how we operate. We go to great lengths to keep the two worlds separate. My manor and others such as mine, are on land that is unplottable. What I mean by that is that the land is not on any map. It can only be located by those who know where it is. There happens to be an old train station by our manor that is used for the barrier. Witches and wizards that wish to come have to go to the train station and step through the barrier, which is an inconspicuous brick wall. Then they are on our land. Now there are many spells, charms, and hexes that surround our manors. If a Muggle draws too near, they suddenly remember that they have an important appointment, or they need to do something that they forgot." Gabriel laughed. "It is quite useful, actually. Another thing is that no witch or wizard can Apparate onto our grounds."

"Apparate?"

"You disappear in one place and reappear in another."

Brianna smiled. "That sounds like a cool thing to be able to do."

Gabriel nodded. "It certainly helps out in some situations."

"So, do you really live in New York?"

"No," Gabriel said, shaking his head. "We live on the outskirts of Birmingham, a town in England."

Brianna's eyebrows rose. "So I was in England?"

Gabriel nodded, smiling. "Yes, you were."

"Okay, question. I didn't say anything before because I thought that you would think I was crazy, but since you are a wizard, I'm guessing?" Gabriel nodded. "Well, when I was out in that carriage, I thought I saw a unicorn. Was I seeing things, or did I actually see one?"

Gabriel smiled. "Most likely, you did see an actual unicorn." Brianna's eyes widened. "You see, I take care of many different magical creatures, many of their homes are in the woods on my land. I let them roam free, because they are safe. No one, even a wizard or a witch, can get anywhere near the manor or the safe-grounds without my wishing of it."

"Wow," was all Brianna could say. She swallowed. "So there are schools for this stuff?"

Gabriel nodded. "Yes. There are several, actually, spaced around the world. The school that Sarah and I went to is in England. It is called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"That's the school where Dominic goes," Brianna realized, beginning to piece together everything.

Gabriel smiled. "Yes, he does."

"So what's Hogwarts like?"

"Well, you have seen a picture of it." Brianna looked at him in confusion. "It was the tapestry above the fireplace in the room where you originally woke up."

"Oh," Brianna said. She smiled. "It looks awesome."

"Yes, I suppose you can put it that way," Gabriel said, smiling. "You see, Hogwarts is divided into four houses: Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, and Slytherin. Each house has their own specific colors. Ravenclaw is blue and white. Hufflepuff is black and gold. Gryffindor is gold and scarlet. Slytherin is green and silver."

"So those clothes that I was wearing, Sarah's old school things, she was a Ravenclaw?"

"Yes," Gabriel said.

"Which house were you?"

"I was in Gryffindor."

"Cool. What about Dominic?" Gabriel winced, looking uncomfortable. "What's wrong? Did I say something?"

"No . . ." Gabriel said, sighing. "It is just that we do not like speaking about the house that Dominic was sorted into."

"You don't have to say anything."

"Let me tell you the history of Hogwarts, so that you will understand our place a little better. Hogwarts was formed centuries ago. The original founders, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, Godric Gryffindor, and Salazar Slytherin, decided to make a school to educate young witches and wizards. Three of the founders agreed that they would make the school open to everyone, including Muggle-borns."

"Like me."

"Yes. But Salazar Slytherin thought differently. He thought that only pure-bloods should be allowed to study magic; that it should be kept in the old wizarding families. He was outnumbered and became very bitter. Slytherin has always been the outcast and rival to all the other houses. There is a legend that goes with this story; that Salazar Slytherin made a chamber somewhere in Hogwarts called the Chamber of Secrets. Only his true heir would be able to open it and unleash the monster within to purge the school of all Muggle-borns. Last year, Harry Potter, a third-year now at Hogwarts, found this chamber, defeated the monster that was kept in it, and saved the life of Ginny Weasley, a girl who had been taken by the Heir of Slytherin: Tom Riddle, a boy who had preserved his memory in a diary that poor Ginny found. Needless to say, this was all hushed up and no one has spoken of it again."

"Tom Riddle doesn't sound like a very nice person."

"No, he isn't."

"Isn't? I thought he was just a memory."

"Tom Riddle, after completing his years at Hogwarts, turned evil. We do not know why. He declared himself as Lord . . ." Gabriel grimaced.

"What's wrong?"

"We – we do not speak his name. He did horrible things and we all lived in fear up until thirteen years ago when Harry Potter defeated him."

"But he would have been only a year old!"

"Exactly. You see, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named attacked the Potter home, killing Lily and James Potter. He tried to kill Harry, but somehow, his curse backfired, leaving Harry only with a lighting bolt scar. The curse hit He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and turned him into little more than an entity. He is still out there, building his strength. I fear that he will once again regain power, and if he does, we are all in serious trouble."

"And I thought I had problems," Brianna muttered, looking down, shaking her head. She sighed. "Wow, there's so much I never knew." She looked up. "Earlier, you said that Dominic was 'sorted' into his house. What did you mean by 'sorted'?"

"When first-years first come to Hogwarts, they are placed before the Sorting Hat, in the Sorting Ceremony, and take turns placing the hat on their heads. The hat then decides which house is best suited to the person and calls out the house. The Sorting Hat is always right about which house the person is placed in, even if some of us do not agree with the decision."

"What do you mean?"

"Dominic was placed in Slytherin."

"What's wrong with that? I know the founder was bad, but what about the house?"

Gabriel sighed. "Brianna, every Dark witch and wizard has come out of Slytherin. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was in Slytherin. I am sure not every student in Slytherin is bad, but a vast majority are. And my son being placed in Slytherin reflects badly on us. It is one thing when your entire blood-line has been in Slytherin, like the Malfoys or Blacks for instance, but it is another when your entire family has been placed in either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, and your son is placed in Slytherin. It says something about Dominic and people will think that he is bad or evil because of his house. And I know that is not true. Dominic is one of the nicest, most-caring, selfless individuals that I know, and I know that I am his father, so I am slightly biased, but other people have said the same thing about him. I do not want him having to live with rumors about him and people thinking he is evil just because of his house."

"Yeah, I guess I see what you mean," Brianna said softly. "Maybe the hat made a mistake?"

"No," Gabriel said, shaking his head. "The Sorting Hat does not make mistakes. That is why we are very worried about this matter, but we do not say anything around Dominic, for he is proud of his house, he is on the house team, and he has a great number of friends."

Brianna nodded. "Sounds alright. So, Quidditch is not a normal game, right?" Brianna asked, looking at him knowingly.

Gabriel smiled. "You do not miss a thing, do you?"

"I try not to," Brianna said with a smile.

"You are correct. Quidditch is a wizarding game. The game is played above a pitch, on broomsticks. The Chasers control the Quaffle, the ball, and they try to throw it through any of the three hoops that are their goal. The Beaters use clubs to knock the Bludgers away from the players, especially the Seeker. The Bludgers are balls that fly around the pitch. Many players have been knocked off their brooms by Bludgers. There are charms around the pitch that keep the Quaffle, Bludgers, and Snitch within. The Snitch is a tiny golden ball with wings, and it is very fast and nearly impossible to see. Each team has a Seeker. The Seeker is the player that tries to catch the golden Snitch. If they do, this ends the game and they earn 150 points towards their score. This usually ensures a win to that team. The Keeper defends the hoops and has to have very fast reflexes."

"That game sounds really cool!" Brianna exclaimed, grinning. "I hope I get to see a game sometime."

"Well, you will once you go to Hogwarts."

"You think I'll actually get to go?" Brianna asked, raising her eyebrows.

Gabriel nodded. "After those incidents in the past week, I am sure that Dumbledore is aware of your magical ability. You should receive your acceptance letter the year of your eleventh birthday. Since you have a birthday in December, you will most likely receive your letter the following August by Owl Post."

"So what is Owl Post? It's not like our mail, is it," Brianna said, smiling.

"Right again," Gabriel said with a smile. "The way that we communicate with one another is by the Owl Post. Each family, and usually the children, has an owl. You write your letter, tie it to the owl, and the owl finds the person that you send your letter to. They are very good about that. In instances involving Muggles, the owls drop the letters on your front stoop, or in mailboxes. That way it is not as big of a shock to the Muggle who picks up the mail in the morning." Gabriel smiled. "I think your parents would have been slightly shocked if an owl had delivered your letter."

Brianna smiled, laughing. "Yeah, they would've been." She sat back, shaking her head. "I still can't believe all this stuff is real. It's just so wild."

"You have at least two years to think about it and talk to your parents."

Brianna shook her head. "They'll just think I'm crazy."

"Well, then, wait until the letter arrives, and then explain. I think your claim will be a little more believable with the letter in your hand."

"Right," Brianna said, nodding.

"Now, to another objective. Do you have any plans for next summer?"

Brianna shrugged. "We don't have enough money to do much of anything, so I figure I'll just stay home and do some reading."

"Well," Gabriel said with a smile, "if you would like, we have tickets for the Quidditch World Cup that takes place next summer, and we would like you to go with us."

Brianna's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. "What! You mean to an actual Quidditch match?"

"Yes," Gabriel said, smiling. "You said that you would like to see a match, and this is the ultimate match."

"That would be awesome!" Then Brianna frowned and looked down sadly. "But I can't. My parents would never let me go and I'd be gone for a really long time. What if they need me?"

"I think that I will talk to your parents and we can make our plans from there. Does that sound good to you?"

Brianna looked at him and smiled. "That might work. But, you can't tell them about Quidditch because then you'd have to tell them about the wizarding world and they would think you're crazy."

Gabriel smiled. "I can say that it is a World Soccer Game, can I not?"

Brianna shrugged. "I guess, but how long would I be gone for?"

"Only a few weeks."

"Weeks?" Brianna asked. "But I can't."

"Brianna, I think that your parents will be fine for a few weeks," Gabriel said with a smile. "Do not worry. I will talk to them. If they say that you can go, I think this is an opportunity of a life time."

Brianna nodded. She grinned. "Sounds great."

"Well then," Gabriel said, standing. Brianna stood also. "I think our discussion is over for the moment. I will always be here if you have any questions about anything to do with wizarding. As I said when we departed from the manor, I will send you an owl and you can write back. Do you have a place where Lora, my owl, could deliver your letter? I think it would be much easier when you send your reply."

Brianna nodded. "I have this place I call the Tower where I have my books and where I go when I want to be alone. There's a window up there that I can open. Your owl can come through there."

Gabriel nodded. "Very well. Lora will deliver your letter there and she will stay with you until you have written your reply. That way, all you have to do is attach your reply to her leg and she will take it to me."

"Okay," Brianna said.

"Let us go speak with your parents now, shall we?"

"Sure," Brianna said, nodding. She picked up her coat and followed Gabriel out of his office, down the elevator, and back to the lobby where her parents were waiting.

"Thank you, Doctor," her mother said, clasping Gabriel's hand in her own.

"Did you get to talk about everything?" her father asked, looking at Brianna.

"Yes," Brianna said.

Gabriel looked at her parents, smiling. "You can call me Gabriel." Both her parents looked at him. "Doctor is such a formal name, and, as you can see, I am not wearing a white coat. I much prefer robes, for they are more comfortable."

Her parents smiled. "Well, Gabriel, thank you for taking time to speak with Brianna," her father said.

"There was a slight favor I would like to ask of you, though," Gabriel said.

"Anything," her mother said, nodding.

"Well, you see, Brianna stayed with me and my family for the past few days."

"So you're the Gabriel that Brianna was telling us so much about!" her father exclaimed.

Gabriel smiled, nodding. "Yes."

"We appreciate it so much that you took her in. That was very kind," her mother said.

"It was not a problem," Gabriel said. "While she was at my home, she had a long conversation with my wife, Sarah, who told me everything."

"And?" her mother asked nervously.

"From what I have learned, I do not think there is anything to worry about," Gabriel said. Her parents sighed with relief. "School can be stressful and so it is natural for a child to become angrier at times. Odd things happen all the time, and we can not always explain them. For instance, from what I know of Brianna's school, it is not a very wealthy school. The windows could have shattered because of a plane passing by, or the subway. The glass was probably old and very prone to any slight shock in the ground. Any little movement like a train passing by could have done it. As to the dodge-balls that burst into flame, the boys could have easily rigged them to do that. Children these days can just about rig anything. When the glass shattered at dinner, Brianna could have just lightly touched it and it could have broken. If there is a weak spot in a glass and you touch it, it can trigger cracks that make the glass shatter. When you thought that Brianna was touching the fire, I do not think that she was. I think she had her hands near it, but not actually in the flames. When you startled her, however, her hands flinched and the tips of the flames touched her hands, which is the reason why she only had a slight burn on her hand."

"So she's okay?" her father asked.

"Yes, Brianna is completely normal," Gabriel said, smiling. "None of the occurrences that happened were caused by Brianna and I think she is a brilliant and very interesting child. You do not have to worry about anything," he said reassuringly.

"Oh, that is such a relief!" her mother exclaimed, smiling. "We were so worried that there was something wrong. Thank you for taking time to see her. We really do appreciate this."

"It is not a problem," Gabriel said.

"So, what did you want to ask us?" her father asked.

"Well, we enjoyed Brianna's company very much during her short stay, so much, that we would like her to spend a few weeks with us next summer. You see, there is a world sporting event that is taking place next summer, and we have an extra ticket. It is a very prestigious event, and it is very hard to find tickets. We would very much like her to join us."

Her parents looked at one another. Her father looked back at Gabriel. "We'll have to talk about it, but as of now, I don't see why she couldn't go with you."

_Yes! _ Brianna thought happily. She grinned.

"That would be splendid if she could. I am going to send her a letter soon, just to stay in touch, and then she will know where to send her reply. I hope that she will be able to come."

Her mother smiled. "It sounds wonderful, and like a great opportunity. We will tell you our answer in Brianna's reply."

"That would be brilliant," Gabriel said.

"Did you move here from England?" her father asked. Gabriel looked at him. "It's just that I noticed your accent earlier."

Gabriel nodded. "I am British, yes," Gabriel said, chuckling.

"I always loved to hear people speak with British accents," her mother said, smiling, her eyes bright.

Gabriel smiled. "That is good to hear." He glanced at the clock. "Well," he said, taking a breath, "I really must be going. I have several other appointments and while I enjoy speaking with you, I need to attend to my job. Thank you for waiting." He looked at Brianna and winked. "Remember, Brianna, if you ever need to talk, you know where to find me."

Brianna smiled. "Right."

"Thank you again, Gabriel," her mother said.

"Thank you," her father said, shaking Gabriel's hand.

"When you can help someone, you do not need to be thanked," Gabriel said. "It was my pleasure. Brianna is a good child, and you are very fortunate to have such a wonderful daughter."

Her parents beamed; her mother blushing with pride. "Thank you," her mother said.

Gabriel nodded and headed back to his office.

Her parents turned to her. "Well, Brianna, you feel better?" her father asked.

Brianna nodded, smiling. "A lot better. You were right. I understand myself now." _You have no idea. I wish I could tell you! But I can't; you would never believe me in a million years_. She smiled. _Or at least two years, if my letter comes._

"Good. Let's get home then," her father said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

"Then we can go for dinner." Her mother smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I can't wait!" Brianna said, grinning up at both of them.

Her parents smiled and they left the building, heading home.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: all JKRs**

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews so far! I always love to read what you think :D Enjoy! **

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**Chapter Six**

**-The Announcement -**

On Christmas morning, Brianna awoke to Maria and Terrance jumping on her bed. "Wake up! Brianna, wake up! Come see the presents!" they cried.

Brianna rubbed her eyes and sat up, looking at them sleepily. "Okay, okay, I'm coming," she said with a smile, covering her mouth with a yawn.

"Yea!" Maria cried, running out of the bedroom, Terrance at her heels. "Mommy, Brianna's coming!" Brianna heard Maria cry.

Brianna laughed quietly as she climbed out of bed. She yawned, stretching as she made her way into the living room. A small tree had been set up next to the fireplace, decorated with the hand-made popcorn strings and bows that they had made the previous night. A cheery fire burned brightly in the fireplace, making the room glow softly.

"Merry Christmas, Brianna," her father said, walking over to her and giving her a hug.

"Merry Christmas, Dad," she said, hugging him in return.

Her mother came over and gave her a hug. "Merry Christmas, dear," she said.

"Merry Christmas, Momma," Brianna said, smiling.

"Well, I think it's time to open presents, shall we?" her father asked, looking around at them, grinning.

"Yes! Presents!" Terrance yelled, running around in a circle.

Brianna laughed as she sat down by the couch. Although there were only a few gifts around the little tree, Brianna knew that they were thought-felt and she didn't mind at all. She was just glad to be able to share this time with her family.

"Brianna, this is yours," Maria said, handing Brianna a gift.

Brianna smiled. "Thank you, Maria." Brianna tore of the wrapping paper and opened the cardboard box, pulling out a beautiful dark blue cashmere sweater. "Oh my god," Brianna gasped, tears coming to her eyes. _I wonder what this cost! The only place I know that sells this is Macy's and they're so expensive!_ "You guys, you didn't have to do this."

Her mother and father smiled. "It's your birthday and Christmas present from us, and we wanted you to have something special."

"Thank you so much!" she said, tears pouring out of her eyes. She jumped up and ran over to her parents, hugging them fiercely.

"We're glad that you like it," her father said, smiling.

"Can I open my present now?" Maria asked, bouncing where she stood for she was so anxious to get to her present.

They looked at her and laughed. "Of course, dear," her mother said.

Maria grinned and ran over to the tree, dragging a large box over in front of the couch. Brianna sat down on the couch, pulling on the cashmere sweater. She smiled, hugging her arms around it. She watched happily as Maria tore through the wrapping paper.

"I'll help too!" Terrance cried and proceeded to rip off the paper. Underneath the paper was a box with a large Barbie doll in it.

"Ooooo, a dolly!" Maria cried. "Daddy, open it!"

"Sure," her father said and went into the kitchen. He returned with a large pair of scissors and began cutting through the plastic. After a lot of cutting and pulling, he took out the doll and handed it to Maria, who hugged it tightly.

"I love it!" she said, grinning from ear to ear.

"My turn!" Terrance said and ran to the tree. He walked back and sat down, placing his present in front of him. He tore off the wrappings, revealing a stack of three books. "Oooo, books!" He quickly picked up the first one, flipping through the picture-filled pages. "Look Brianna, it's the swan princess!" he cried, pointing to a picture.

Brianna crawled over to him and looked where he was pointing. She smiled, looking at him. "You're right."

"Did you write this?" Terrance asked, his eyes wide, looking at her.

Brianna chuckled and smiled. "No, I didn't, but I got the story from a book I read. Now you can read stories."

"So I can tell you stories now?" Terrance asked hopefully.

"Of course," Brianna said warmly. Terrance grinned and continued to flip through the pages. Brianna looked at her parents. "Thank you so much, for everything."

"You don't need to thank us," her mother said, smiling. "Seeing the enjoyment on all your faces is payment enough."

"Don't you have gifts to open?"

Her mother shook her head. "Our gifts are sitting before us, in you, Maria, and Terrance."

Brianna smiled. "You guys are really too much. I love you!" she cried, hugging both of her parents. Maria and Terrance looked up from what they were doing and ran over to their parents.

"We love you too!" they cried, hugging their parents.

-------

As they sat down to their Christmas dinner, her father cleared his throat and said, "Children, I have an announcement to make."

They stopped eating and looked at him. "What?" Brianna asked.

"You know how the rioters have been making my job difficult."

"Yes," her mother said.

"Well, they're shutting down the factory."

"What?" her mother cried, dropping her fork into her mashed potatoes. "You mean you don't have a job anymore?"

"Just wait," her father said, holding up a hand. "There's more."

"More?" Brianna asked, raising her eyebrows.

"When they told us they were shutting down the factory, they called out a few names to see the owner of the chain of factories. When I went to my meeting with him, he told me that they were going to relocate us to a different place so that we could keep our jobs. We'll be helping other factories get on their feet and get stronger, working as consultants."

"You mean we have to move?" Brianna asked.

"We're leaving?" Maria asked, looking at her parents wide-eyed.

"Yes, Maria," her father said.

"Where are we going?" her mother asked.

"England."

"What?" Brianna exclaimed, her jaw dropping open. "_England_?"

Her father nodded. "Yes."

"How are we expected to move to England?" her mother asked. "We can't afford the airfare."

"It's covered by the company since they're relocating us. I was talking with Dr. Nemon, as he has become a good friend of the family, and he knew of a place we could stay that was up for sale and in our price range. It will take us awhile to pay it off, but we'll manage. He also had some strings he pulled to have me placed in factory close by. We have a small house in Surrey. He convinced me that England is the place to go right now, especially with the job outlook. The school you will be attending is a Secondary School and Maria and Terrance will be attending a Junior School. Dr. Nemon is already in the process of getting us the visas we need to stay in England."

"We're going to England," Brianna said in disbelief. _Wait, Gabriel and Sarah are in England! That means I'll be closer to them! I can't wait to tell them! Then I can see them and Dominic again!_ "When are we going?"

"Next week."

"What?" her mother exclaimed, shocked. "That soon?"

Her father nodded. "I know it is short notice, but I've already spoken with the principals of their schools and I'm going in a few days to finish all the paperwork. My company has covered the bulk of it and has taken care of enrolling them in their new schools. We just need to pack up our things and be at LaGaurdia Airport on Thursday by two o'clock."

"This is just so . . . so sudden," her mother said, shaking her head. "England."

"Are the schools in England like the ones here?" Brianna asked.

Her father shrugged. "I would think so, for these are the schools for the general public. They have private schools but those are for the richer families and then on top are the boarding schools."

Brianna nodded. "May I be excused? I need to think about this."

Her father nodded. "Of course."

"Ooooh, we're flying?" Terrance asked as Brianna left the table.

"On a plane?" Maria asked.

"Yes," her father said, laughing. "Let's hope we're on a plane!"

Brianna made herself a cup of hot cocoa, sipping it. Then she walked into her bedroom, took a blanket, and climbed the rickety ladder up to the Tower. She crawled over to the window and looked out at the window-lit skyscrapers, hugging her blanket around her. _England. Wow. I just can't believe it! I'm going to England! I wonder what it's going to be like? _Brianna chuckled softly. _Well, I'll only have to put up with it for one year if it's horrible, because then I'll be at Hogwarts!_

Brianna looked over at her pile of books and pulled the top book over, setting it on her lap. The book, _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them _was one of the books that the Conners had let her borrow.

She flipped through the pages and stopped, looking at a paragraph about phoenixes.

_PHOENIX_

_M.O.M. Classification: XXXX11_

_The phoenix is a magnificent, swan-sized, scarlet bird with a long golden tail, beak, and talons. It nests on mountain peaks and is found in Egypt, India, and China. The phoenix lives to an immense age as it can regenerate, bursting into flames when its body begins to fail and rising again from the ashes as a chick. The phoenix is a gentle creature that has never been known to kill and eats only herbs. Like the Diricrawl, it can disappear and reappear at will. Phoenix song is magical; it is reputed to increase the courage of the pure of heart and to strike fear into the hearts of the impure. Phoenix tears have powerful healing properties._

_The phoenix gains a XXXX rating not because it is aggressive, but because very few wizards have ever succeeded in domesticating it._

Brianna sat back. _Wow, they sound so cool! I wonder if I'll ever be able to see one? I guess it's possible. _She flipped through the pages again and spotted a name of interest. _Merpeople? They actually exist?_ Brianna began reading.

_MERPEOPLE_

_M.O.M. Classification: XXXX10_

_Merpeople exist throughout the world, though they vary in appearance almost as much as humans. Their habits and customs remain as mysterious as those of the centaur, though those wizards who have mastered the language of Mermish speak of highly organized communities varying in size according to habitat, and some have elaborately constructed dwellings. Like the centaurs, the merpeople have declined "being" status if favour of a "beast" classification. The oldest recorded merpeople were known as sirens (Greece) and it is in warmer waters that we find the beautiful mermaids so frequently depicted in Muggle literature and painting. The selkies of Scotland and the Merrows of Ireland are less beautiful, but they share that love of music which is common to all merpeople._

_The merpeople are given an XXXX classification not because they are unduly aggressive, but because they should be treated with great respect._

Brianna smiled in amazement. _This book is amazing! Who would have thought that these creatures actually exist? I've read about mermaids in so many stories and for them to be real, it's just mind boggling!_ She set aside the book and picked up another, which was _Quidditch Throughout the Ages_. Brianna smiled. _I'd better make sure I know all about Quidditch so that I'm ready for the match this summer!_

Brianna leaned against the wall and began reading the book cover to cover.

-------

Brianna had finished reading when she heard a screech and looked out the window to see an owl hovering outside. She quickly pushed open the window and Gabriel's owl, Lora, flew through.

_It's so cold out there I nearly froze!_

Brianna froze, staring at Lora, her eyes wide. "D – Di –Did you just speak?" she stammered, swallowing.

Lora looked at her and blinked her round eyes.

_Oh, so you can understand me? Curious, well, no matter, you have anything warm? I'm freezing!_

"O-Oh, of course," Brianna managed. _I'm talking to an owl!_ She realized in amazement. She glanced around the Tower and spotted her mug of hot chocolate. "I'm afraid all I have is this," she said, holding up the mug.

_No matter, if it's warm, that's all that counts._

Brianna placed the mug before Lora, who dipped her beak into it.

_Good, good. Here are your letters._ Lora stuck out her talon and Brianna quickly untied the letters. _ I do hope you're not going to make me fly back immediately. You should try flying over the Atlantic during a storm! It's exhausting!_

"Well, you can stay over there," Brianna said, pointing to a cage that sat in the corner by the base of her feet. "I'm sorry that it's not very warm up here, but I can get you a blanket or something."

_That would be wonderful._

Brianna climbed down into her room and came back up a few minutes later, a small blanket in her hand.

Lora flew into the cage, perching on the rod. She dipped her beak into the dish of water and gave a hoot of satisfaction. _Water. Yes, I needed that._

She wrapped Lora in the blanket.

_Thank you. I'm going to catch a little sleep at the moment._

"Okay. Do you need anything else? Something to eat?"

_No, I'm alright. I ate just before I arrive here. Just some sleep._

"Well, you won't have to fly very far anymore," Brianna said with a smile. "We're moving to England."

_England? Really, well Gabriel and Sarah will be pleased. And I'm very glad because now I won't have to make those horrible trips across all that water!_

Brianna smiled. "Yes, that's one thing you won't have to do anymore. I'll be back."

Lora hooted again.

Brianna smiled, shaking her head as she climbed down the ladder. _I just spoke to an owl! My God, this is all happening so fast! Can all witches and wizards speak to owls and understand them? That's something I'll have to ask Gabriel about. Funny, I've never heard any other animal speaking. Maybe it's because my powers have just recently awakened. _Brianna shrugged. _I guess I'll see when I get Gabriel's response. Still, talking to an owl! What could be stranger?_

She walked into the living room, where her parents sat, talking. Maria and Terrance were busy on the floor with their presents. Her parents looked up at her when she entered, smiling.

"I just got letters from Gabriel, Sarah, and Dominic!" Brianna said happily, holding up the letters.

"That's wonderful, dear," her mother said.

"I suppose you'll be wanting our answer for this summer, then?" her father asked, a twinkle in his eye.

Brianna smiled. "If you have an answer."

Her father nodded. "We do. We were just talking about that, actually, because we'll be in England and if we have to get you back here for the game, I don't know how we're going to do that."

"Gabriel said that he would take care of getting me to the match," Brianna said, slightly nervous inside. _I can't tell them about Quidditch or that Gabriel and Sarah live in England. Not yet, anyway. I wish I could tell them though; I feel so guilty about not telling the entire truth._

"If you're sure . . ." her mother said slowly.

Brianna nodded. "I'm sure."

"I don't see why not, then," her father said, glancing at her mother. "As long as they can take care of transportation and they'll be with you the entire time, I think you should go."

Brianna grinned. "Thanks!" she cried and ran to her parents, hugging them.

"Now that that's covered, we'll need to discuss the moving," her father said.

Brianna nodded. "Okay." She sat down at the end of the couch.

"Your mother is going to need a lot of help getting everything packed and ready to ship," her father said. "We need to take everything to the post office on Wednesday except for the things you want on the plane and clothes for about a week." Brianna nodded. "I know this is going to be quite a change, but it's for the better."

"I know," Brianna said.

"Good," her father said, smiling. "See if you can't talk to your grandfather and get some of the empty boxes to bring home."

"I will," Brianna said, nodding.

"You're a wonderful daughter, Brianna," her mother said. Brianna smiled. "Always so helpful and ready to do anything. We're very proud of you."

Her father nodded. "Yes, and we believe that you will become something great."

Brianna smiled. "Thanks." _You have no idea!_ She thought with a smile.

-------

Later, Brianna sat in her room, reading her letters.

_Dear Brianna,_

_We hope that you had a wonderful Christmas and we look forward to your next visit. How have you been? We are doing well and Christmas went smoothly, although we had the Malfoys over. To lighter things, have you spoken with your parents about the Quidditch World Cup? We hope that you can attend, for this is a wonderful opportunity and we would hate to have you miss it. _

_Has anything else strange happened to you, lately? We know that this is all very sudden, but being a witch will pay off, for you will have many opportunities in the wizarding world that would not be available in the Muggle world._

_Have you enjoyed your books? There are many interesting things, are there not? _

_We hope to hear from you soon,_

_Gabriel and Sarah Conner_

Brianna smiled, placing the letter on her bed. _Those two are so awesome!__I'm really lucky to have them as people I can talk to. Especially now that I'm a witch. What a thought! I never thought that I would be an actual witch, it's so cool though. I can't wait until school!_

She picked up Dominic's letter and opened it, unfolding the parchment.

_Brianna,_

_How is everything in the Muggle world? Anything interesting happen? Nothing more has been heard about Sirius Black here, but a few strange things have occurred. He's tried several times to get into Hogwarts; after Harry Potter, we all think. Some of us wouldn't mind if Black did finally get him, but I don't need to go into that at the moment._

_Christmas was brilliant; I had one of my better friends here and it helped pass the time. You wouldn't believe what we did! We were up in my room, bored, and decided to make a potion. Well, needless to say, Draco put in an ingredient that wasn't supposed to be in it and it exploded! My parents were up before I could say "Quidditch" ! We got in so much trouble! But it was brilliant, and I wouldn't give it up for anything._

_I think that it is wicked that you are a witch! Who would've thought? I mean, when I first met you, I just thought you were a Muggle that my dad had picked up, but after they told me that you were really a witch, I have to admit, I was completely stunned! What do you think? I can't wait to show you the wizarding world! It's brilliant! And Hogwarts, wait until you get there! I love it at school and wouldn't trade it for anything. This summer, if you get to go to the World Cup with us, I'll have to introduce you to my friends. I wonder what house you'll be sorted into . . . oh well, I suppose we'll know when you get to Hogwarts! _

_Talk to you soon,_

_Dominic Conner_

Brianna laughed. _Dominic is a lot different! He was very tense when I was at the manor, but I guess it was because he thought I was a Muggle and he really had to watch what he said and acted like. Well, I'm glad that he's more relaxed now. He sounds really cool and I can't wait to see more of the wizarding world! _Then Brianna's smile faded. What were her parents going to think when she finally told them? _Hopefully they won't take it too badly._

Brianna sighed and took a piece of notebook paper and a pen. Using a book, she quickly wrote her reply.

_Dear Gabriel, Sarah, and Dominic,_

_Good news! I can go to the World Cup! I can't wait! It sounds so awesome! Also, there's something that's just come up. As you know, we're moving to England, so that means I'll be closer to you! I'm going to need all the friends I can get and I'll take you up on your offer, Dominic. Also, something really strange just happened. When Lora came to deliver your letters, she spoke to me! Not out loud, but in my head, like I could understand her thoughts. It was really weird and I was just wondering, is it common for a witch or wizard to be able to speak to animals? The thing is, I've never been able to hear the thoughts of animals before, but maybe I can, now that my powers have awakened? I'd appreciate your thoughts, for I'm really confused._

_Well, I'd better go, since I need to get some sleep and do all the packing. We'll be there next Friday. I hope to see you soon!_

_Brianna_

Brianna folded her piece of paper and climbed the ladder to the Tower. Lora opened her eyes, looking at Brianna.

"Here are my letters."

_Very well. Just tie them to my leg. _

She tied her reply on Lora's leg. "Do you need anything before you head out?"

_No, no, thank you very much for the blanket._ Brianna nodded, taking the blanket off of Lora. She flew up to the window ledge._ Once they get these letter and respond, you'll be in England, I am sure._

Brianna nodded. "Yes, probably."

_Then I'll see you in England._

"You can find me without an address?"

_Of course!_ Lora said indignantly. _They don't rely on us for nothing, we're the owl post! That's what we do!_

"That's amazing," Brianna said in awe.

_Thank you. _ Lora flew out the window.

Brianna closed the window and headed back down to her bedroom. She pulled on her pajamas and climbed into bed, falling asleep almost instantly.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

**-New Place, New School, New World-**

Brianna looked out the window on the plane as they sped across the clouds. _This is so cool! The clouds look just like sand! And it's so beautiful, with the sun shining down and the crystal clear blue sky! This is one of the best experiences I've ever had! I had been slightly nervous, looking at the huge planes, but now, I absolutely love it!_

She chuckled softly. _Maria and Terrance had been so excited when we had arrived at LaGaurdia! They were constant chatterboxes. When Terrance saw our plane, I thought he was going to jump out of his skin he was so excited. And Maria, she was excited but she was so nervous when we stepped onto the plane. I think she was worried that it was going to fly off before we got to our seats! _

She looked over to her right where Maria and Terrance were lying, sound asleep. Her mother had put up the armrests so that the twins could lie down. _They were so exhausted from the excitement; they immediately fell asleep once we lifted off. _

She looked out the window again and sighed. The past few days had been hectic, getting everything packed and making sure they didn't leave anything. The few possessions that they did own were now on the way to their new home in Surrey. _I wonder what the school is going to be like. And the other kids? I hope that I won't be looked down upon for not having that much money. From what my father said about the school, there won't be that many wealthy kids; most of them are at private or boarding schools. I hope my teachers will be nice. I guess I'll just have to do the best I can!_

Brianna moved Maria's head into her lap, stroking her hair. _You two are wonderful; I don't know what I would do without you._ She heard a soft snore behind her and smiled, knowing that her father was sound asleep behind her.

"They're angels when they're asleep, aren't they?"

Brianna looked behind her and saw her mother looking down at Maria and Terrance. "Yes, but they're angels all the time, for the most part," Brianna said, smiling.

"Only five more hours to go until we reach England. Are you nervous?"

"A little," Brianna said, nodding. "It's going to be really strange, but I think it'll be a lot better than New York City. Besides, it's the chance to meet a whole bunch of new people."

"Yes, you're right. You know, you always did look on the bright side of things."

"Would you like anything to drink?" a voice asked softly.

Brianna looked up at the stewardess and nodded. "Water, please."

The stewardess nodded and handed Brianna an empty cup and a water bottle. Brianna pulled down the tray in the middle seat and placed her water on it, careful not to awaken Maria or Terrance.

Brianna glanced around the large plane and realized that most everyone was asleep. She smiled. _They won't be when these two wake up! They're going to be full of energy!_

Brianna waited until the stewardess had given her mother some water, and then said, "Maybe London won't be that much different from downtown New York. And I can't wait to see some of the sights!"

"Me neither. I expect you'll transition well, though. I'm sure you'll make plenty of friends."

"Hopefully."

Her mother nodded and sat back. Brianna leaned against her seat, closing her eyes. _If I can get some sleep now, I'll need all the rest I can get when we get to England._

----

About a half an hour before they were scheduled to land, Maria and Terrance woke up. The rest of the passengers were stirring as well. "Are we there yet?" Maria asked.

"Almost," Brianna said.

"Yea!" she cried. Brianna chuckled.

"So where are we going to be living?" Terrance asked.

"Surrey."

"What's that like?"

"I don't know; we'll find out when we get there, I guess."

Terrance took a piece of paper and a pencil from his bag and began drawing. Maria pulled out two of her dolls and began making them speak to one another.

"John, we're almost there. Wake up." Brianna heard her mother say.

Her father grunted. 'W – what? We're there?"

"Nearly."

A sign flashed on over there heads, instructing them to put on their seatbelts. The pilot's voice came over the intercom. "We're beginning our descent now. London is foggy and zero degrees Celsius. Not to bad for this time of year. We'll be landing shortly."

"You hear that, Maria? Almost there!" Brianna said, smiling.

Maria grinned. "Cool!"

"Is it cold there?" Terrance asked, frowning slightly.

"Probably about the same as New York," Brianna answered.

"Will there be a lot of kids?" Maria asked, her eyes wide.

"Oh yes, but not as many as our old schools. And I think these will be nicer."

Maria and Terrance nodded. Suddenly the plane jerked slightly and Terrance gripped his seat, looking around wildly. "What happened?" he asked in a frightened voice.

"Its okay, Terrance," Brianna said, reaching around Maria to put her hands on Terrance. "It's just a little turbulence."

"Is the plane going to crash?" Maria asked, fright in her eyes.

"No, of course not," Brianna soothed. "Don't worry. I've read about this in books and sometimes when a plane hits a change in the air currents, it makes the plane bob a little. But it's nothing to worry about. Don't you fret."

Maria and Terrance nodded, but she knew that they were still scared.

-----

When they landed, they immediately headed to the baggage claim to pick up their suitcases. Brianna's parents concentrated on following the signs and arrows while Brianna watched Maria and Terrance, making sure they didn't stray too far.

Looking around, she took in everything, observing more this time then at LaGuardia. The first time, she had been wide-eyed and amazed, for it was all so new. Even if she had read about airports in her books, seeing one was completely different. The bustle of hundreds of people, dressed in all assortments of clothing. There were the obvious business men and women, and then the tourist families with loud, excited children. Groups of teenagers walked by as well, taking excitedly.

"Oooh! Look at that!"

Brianna looked down at Maria's cry and laughed as the girl ran over to a bakery that was along the long corridor they were walking in. In the glass case, there was a huge chocolate cookie and wonderful smells drifted from the shop. Brianna walked over, watching as Maria, quickly followed by Terrance, placed her hands on the glass, staring at the cookie with a wide-eyed expression.

"How do they get it so big?" Terrance asked in wonder.

"It looks yummy!" was Maria's exclaim.

Her parents were smiling too. Seeing the children's excitement was enough to make anyone's heart warm and put a smile on their face.

Her father walked up to the man at the counter and bought one of the large cookies, handing it down to Maria and Terrance. "Here you go."

"Thanks Daddy!" they both cried and began eating the cookie with all the childish glee to be expected. Brianna laughed, loving just watching them.

"You're welcome," her father said and let Brianna take their free hands. They began walking once again.

"Why do they all sound funny?" Maria asked, as announcements were called over the speakers.

"That's their accents," Brianna explained. "They just sound different to us, but we'll get used to it quickly."

"This airport is larger than LaGuardia, and I thought that was huge!" her mother exclaimed.

"Well, this is an international airport," her father said. "And we are in London."

As they entered the baggage claim area, they stopped, standing next to the baggage carousel where their luggage would come out. Maria and Terrance had to go inspect it, for they had never seen anything like it, leaving Brianna alone. For that matter, none of them had ever seen anything like it, but Brianna had read enough about it to not have the need to look more closely.

Her parents were talking nearby, her mother watching Maria and Terrance out of the corner of her eye.

Brianna looked around and her gaze landed on a bench where an old lady sat, trying to feed a cracker to her bird, which was sitting in its cage, flapping its wings. "Eat this Tooly," the old lady said. "You'll feel better."

_Why don't you try to eat that disgusting thing! You always try to feed me that stuff and I don't like it! Can't you get a clue!_

Brianna looked around for the source of the voice and then her eyes widened as she realized who had spoken: the bird. Brianna smiled, looking at the bird. _This is so cool!_

"Come on, eat up," the old lady insisted.

_I'll bite your fingers if you come any closer! _

"Ouch!" the lady cried as the bird pecked her finger. "Bad boy, Tooly. Now you don't get anything."

_At least I don't have to suffer more crackers!_

Brianna laughed quietly and turned towards her parents. As the baggage carousel hummed to life, Brianna quickly ran over to Maria and Terrance, making sure that they didn't get to close to the moving strip.

"Wow! The bags just appear like that?" Terrance asked, looking at it in wide-eyed wonder.

"No," Brianna said, laughing. "The men from the plane put it on there for us to take."

"Oh."

"Is that ours?" Maria asked, pointing to a beat-up dark green suitcase.

"Good job!" Brianna said, and reached down the pull the bag off.

As they waited for the other bag, Maria and Terrance continued to point out everything that was of interest.

"Look! That bag's all lumpy!" Maria cried.

"Wow, look at that one! It's huge!" Terrance cried.

Brianna laughed, watching closely for their other bag.

When it finally came by them, Brianna reached down and pulled it onto the ground.

"This is it!" Brianna called and her parents walked over to her.

"Good. Okay, now you four wait here while I go hunt down a car," her father said. They all nodded and he walked away, heading towards the transportation area.

"I'm going to go get something to drink," Brianna said. "I spotted a water fountain just over there," she said, pointing over to the wall between the bathrooms.

"Okay, but don't you go too far," her mother cautioned. "This is a big place and we don't know anyone here."

Brianna nodded. "Don't worry." She headed over to the water fountain, relishing the cold water in her mouth. She stood and turned around, only to bump into someone standing behind her. "Oh, I'm sorr – Dominic!" she cried, grinning.

Dominic looked down at her, smiling. He ran a hand through his tussled brown hair, his blue eyes sparkling with laughter. "Do you always run into people like this?" he asked.

Brianna laughed. "No, not usually. How have you been? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I was just interested in seeing what Muggles do for fun," Dominic said teasingly.

Brianna rolled her eyes. "For fun? This isn't fun. It's called 'let's not get killed as we push our way to baggage claim!' You still haven't answered my question."

Dominic shrugged. "I knew you were coming in today and so I decided to see if you needed any help."

"That's nice of you," Brianna said, smiling. "Well," she said, motioning to his Muggle clothing, "at least you dressed normally."

Dominic raised an eyebrow. "Normal? Not even close. But this stuff isn't too bad, I suppose." He winked. "I still have my wand."

Brianna shook her head. "Wizards."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Whatever you take it to mean."

Dominic laughed.

"Well, I guess you want to meet my parents, then. Come on." Brianna headed back over to where her mother waited with Maria and Terrance, Dominic at her heels.

As she drew closer, Maria and Terrance broke away from their mother and ran over to Brianna. "Who's that?" Maria asked, looking up at Dominic.

Dominic knelt down so that he was eye level with Maria. "My name is Dominic. What's yours?"

"I'm Maria. Why do you sound funny?" she asked, taking her last bite of her cookie and swallowing.

Dominic laughed. "You mean my accent? It's British."

"Oh."

"I wanna meet him too!" Terrance cried, pushing past Maria and up to Dominic. "I'm Terrance. We're twins!" he said, pointing to himself and Maria.

"Really?" Dominic said, laughter in his eyes.

"You must be Dominic Conner," her mother said warmly.

Dominic stood and nodded, smiling. "Yes, that's me. Pleasure to meet you."

"I want to thank you for what your family did for us by taking Brianna in for those few days."

"It wasn't a problem."

"Are you here on a trip?" her mother asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Well, I –" Dominic glanced at Brianna, who shook her head. "Family visit."

Her mother nodded. "That's good. It's always a shame when families can't see each other when they live so far away."

"I have a car," she heard her father call. Brianna looked over to see her father walking over. He stopped, looking at Dominic, who was nearly as tall as he was. "And who are you?"

"I'm Dominic Conner," Dominic said, holding out his hand.

Her father shook Dominic's hand, smiling. "The same Dominic Conner from the family that helped Brianna?"

"Yes," Dominic said, nodding. "That's me."

"Wonderful. Please to meet you."

"The same to you. So," Dominic said, looking at them, "you're moving to Surrey?"

Brianna nodded. "That's right."

"Brilliant," Dominic said. He glanced at Brianna and smiled. "A kid that goes to school with me lives there."

"Oh, really?" Brianna asked, raising an eyebrow. "And who might that be?"

"Harry Potter."

"What's so big about Harry Potter?" Terrance asked.

"Oh, he's just a boy at my school," Dominic said. "He's really popular, that's all."

"Really? Cool! Can I meet him?" Terrance asked.

Dominic laughed. "You just might."

"Is he in your grade?" her mother asked.

Dominic shook his head. "No, he's a year older."

She nodded. "Where do you go to school?"

"It's a – a boarding school," Dominic said slowly.

Brianna bit her lip to keep from laughing.

"Your family must be well off, then," her father said.

Dominic nodded. "Well enough."

"That's always good. Well," her father said, looking around at them, "Shall we be going? We have to unpack and it's beginning to get late."

"Would you like any help?" Dominic asked.

"Oh, that would be wonderful," her mother said, sighing. "We don't have much, but another strong person to help lift furniture would be a great help. You're sure your parents won't mind?"

Dominic shook his head. "No, they had a feeling that you might need some help. That's why they sent me over here."

"Well, Dominic, you seem like a fine boy. How old are you?" her father asked.

"Twelve."

"You're so tall!" her mother exclaimed.

Dominic laughed. "I get that from my father."

"Let's get going, shall we?" her mother asked. They all nodded and headed outside to the car that Brianna's father had rented.

-----

As they walked through the furniture store, Dominic and Brianna drew away, looking at the couches and beds. "Something cheap, that's what we need to find," Brianna said as they walked.

"So," Dominic said after awhile, "you ready for the World Cup?"

Brianna grinned. "I can't wait! I read _Quidditch Throughout the Ages_, and so I have a little better understanding of the game and from what Gabriel told me, I think I'll know enough to not be lost."

"That's good. The match is going to be brilliant! We have tickets for the final match and it'll most likely be between Ireland and Bulgaria. Those teams are wicked! Victor Krum, the Seeker for Bulgaria, you've never seen a better Seeker until you've seen him and he's really young too! I think he's even still in school."

"Wow," Brianna said, her face lighting up with amazement. "You go back to school soon, right?"

Dominic nodded. "This weekend."

"So which house are you in again?"

"Slytherin."

"Isn't that the house that's trouble?"

Dominic rolled his eyes. "It's just talk. It's a really good house and we're all really close."

"That's good." After awhile, Brianna asked, "How's Quidditch been going?"

"It's good. If we can win enough matches, we'll win the House Championship."

"That would be really cool. Or, brilliant, right?"

Dominic smiled. "Right."

------

With the money that they had saved up, they managed to buy three beds, a couch, and a table with chairs. After furniture shopping, they bought groceries and headed to their home. Their furniture would be delivered the next day.

As they drove into Surrey, Brianna noticed that all the houses looked exactly the same and there were many streets filled with the same thing. Her father turned left, following the directions given to him by his boss, and pulled into a driveway. "We're here!" her father announced and they climbed out of the car.

Brianna looked to the left at the neighbor's house. It looked exactly like theirs, except it had a built on white rotunda, with large windows. Brianna looked up at her own house and smiled. _Two stories! This is larger than three of those apartments back home!_

Dominic stepped up beside her, carrying a sleeping Maria in his arms. "Not bad, not bad at all," he said softly, so as not to wake Maria.

They followed her father into the house and Brianna looked around the entryway. A staircase went up to her right and a short hallway in front of her headed to what looked like the kitchen. Brianna walked down the hall, investigating. She opened the door, looking around the small kitchen, and then looked around the corner at the spacious living room. _This is so cool! Or brilliant, I guess. And so big!_

She left the living room and headed upstairs. There were three bedrooms and Brianna grinned. _I love it already! _She walked back downstairs, saying goodbye to Dominic as he headed home.

Brianna and her mother took Terrance and Maria up to their room, laying them on some blankets. After a weary goodnight, Brianna hauled herself into her room and collapsed onto her own pile of blankets, falling asleep instantly.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

**-Lions and Legends-**

The first day of school for Brianna came quickly, with a fresh bout of snow along with it. As her father drove her to her school in Lewisham, the city where he worked, she looked out the window at the passing hills and villages. Lewisham was only about a half an hour from Little Whinging, Surrey, the town in which they lived, and since her father began work about the same time she had to be at school, he drove her. She glanced down at the clothes she wore: a knee-length dark gray pleated skirt, a white long-sleeved shirt, and a dark green vest. Her school colors. Though Lewisham Secondary School didn't require a uniform, they had dress codes, and one was that they could wear anything but it had to be in their school colors. There were certain restrictions, such as the length of skirts, but it wasn't too bad.

_Similar to Slytherin colors,_ Brianna thought with a smile. She sighed softly. _I wonder what it's going to be like. My father took me to the school on Friday and it looks very nice. The teachers were all there, working on their lesson plans, and they had all been very kind. I just hope the students are the same, but I suppose I won't be that lucky. _

"Are you ready?" her father asked, glancing at her, smiling.

She looked at him. "As ready as I can be, I suppose."

"You'll be fine," he said reassuringly, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She smiled. "Thanks."

"After school, I'll be waiting for you in the front to take you home."

She nodded. "Alright, but how did you manage to get off of work by four?"

"Most of the things that I have to do involve administrative work, and they won't take me too long to do. Seven until four is plenty enough time."

"Did you get my permission form signed?" she asked. In two weeks, they would be going to the London Zoo for a field trip, and everyone had to have signed forms from their parents allowing them to go.

"Yes, yes, don't worry," he said with a laugh. "The London Zoo sounds fascinating, and I'm sure, with your gift with animals, you'll be in heaven."

Brianna laughed. "I suppose I will be."

Her father smiled and she pulled her school bag onto her lap. Inside were her books, paper, and pencils. She opened the flap and pulled out the letter that she had received that morning from Dominic.

She broke the wax seal and took out the letter.

_Brianna,_

_Well, I'm back at Hogwarts and I know that the professors will be dumping another load onto us as soon as classes start, so I'm not sure how often I will be able to write, but I'll try. I spoke with my parents about how you could speak to Lora, and they said that it is not very common among the wizarding population. They suspect that you might be what, in the wizarding world, we call an Elemental. Part of that gift is that you can speak to animals, and if you have a chance to see other animals, I would suggest trying to speak with them. The other part would be your gift with fire. A lot of witches and wizards are able to do this, so you're not the only one._

_There is a book in our library that I think you should look at. If you show it to my parents, they'll know where to look. It's called _Legendary Wizards_ and there's a passage in there about Merlin that I think would greatly interest you._

_Well, I hope you have a good first day, and you're welcome anytime at the estate. I'll be home for the spring holidays, so hopefully you can come by then. There's something that I want to show you. Draco's calling me, so I'd better go. We're going to dinner. Hope to talk to you soon._

_Dominic_

Brianna smiled, folding the letter and placing it back in her bag. _Thank god for them. Dominic is so great; I'm really glad I became friends with him. And it's good that I know him, because he'll be able to introduce me to all his friends and some of the other students at Hogwarts during the World Cup. I can't wait!_

The car stopped and Brianna realized that they had arrived at Lewisham Secondary School. "Have a good first day," her father said and hugged her.

"Thanks. Have fun at work."

"Always," her father said with a smile.

Brianna smiled and climbed out of the car that her father had purchased over the weekend. She closed the door and looked up at the towering school in front of her. The walls were stone and there were many arched windows. Broad stone steps led up to the large, double-door entrance way, and students milled around the snow-covered lawn, talking amongst themselves and entering the school; a bright mass of green, white, and gray. She took a deep breath and hoisted her bag over her shoulder. She began walking up the sidewalk, mingling with the other students.

When she entered the school, she looked around wide-eyed at the large entrance hall. Steps went up in either direction, leading to the upper floors. She walked across the flagged stones, her Mary Janes clicking on the stones. Once she was through the archway in the back, she saw that there were lockers lining the hall. She took her schedule out and looked at it. "Number 271. Okay." She looked around at the numbers on the lockers and walked until she found hers. Using the combination on her schedule, she opened her locker and placed her bag into it, taking out the books she would need for her classes before lunch.

"Are you new here?" a voice asked.

Brianna shut her locker and turned to see a tall red-headed girl looking at her, a look of interest on her face. Two other girls were standing on either side of her, shorter and dark-haired. She noticed that they were well-dressed, and she was glad that the clothes she wore were brand-new. "Yes, I am. I'm Brianna Olsen."

The girl nodded. "My name is Valerie Kesington." She motioned to the girls beside her. "This is Carrie Swanston and Mabel Rommsel. We're in our fourth year here. Which year are you?"

"I'm in my fourth year," Brianna replied.

The girls smiled. "Brilliant," Valerie said. "Which class do you have first?"

"Um . . ." Brianna glanced down at her schedule. "Math."

Valerie nodded. "That's what we have; you stick with us, and you'll be fine, Brianna."

Brianna smiled. "Thanks!"

As they walked, Brianna noticed the looks that the other students gave Valerie, Mabel, and Carrie. From the looks of it, they were very popular, and Brianna was grateful that she had made friends rather quickly. She just hoped it would last.

"So, Brianna, where did you transfer from?" Mabel asked.

"Oh, I used to go to school called Carson High; it was in New York City," Brianna answered.

"OOhh!" Mabel said, her eyes wide. "You lived in New York City?"

Brianna smiled. "Yep!"

"That explains the accent, then," Carrie said.

"Do I sound that odd?" Brianna asked, looking at her.

Carrie shrugged, giving her a smile. "Just different. Nothing to worry about. You'll be sounding like us in no time."

"I hope. First, though, I have to get used to the different terminology."

"Like what?" Valerie asked.

Brianna looked at her. "Well, for one thing, we say 'cool' or 'sweet', and you would say 'brilliant' or 'wicked'." The three girls nodded. "Do you have anything else that I need to know how to say right?"

"You don't say 'toilet', you say 'loo'," Mabel said.

"And we say a lot of 'rather', and instead of 'kind' we say 'sort," Valerie said.

Brianna nodded. "Right. Thanks."

"No problem," Valerie said, smiling. "Oh, here we are."

Brianna looked around as they entered the large classroom. The desks filled the left side of the room, facing the teacher's desk. Large, arched windows covered the far wall, letting in the bright sunlight, illuminating a few dust bunnies in the air. A number of the seats had already been taken, but Brianna followed Valerie to a cluster of wooden desks right by the windows. Brianna took a seat between Valerie and Mabel.

"The teacher isn't bad," Carrie said and Brianna looked at her. "His name is Professor Xavier and he's quite good."

"Brilliant," Brianna said, smiling.

At that moment, their teacher strode in, a tall, dark-haired man in a crisp black suit. He looked around the room, smiling. _Maybe school won't be that bad, after all._

"Good morning," he said brightly.

"Good morning!" the class chirped.

"Well, today as you know, we'll be doing a bit of review, since I'm sure all your brains have gone to sleep during the break." There were a few chuckles at this. "Can anyone tell me about long division?"

"It's long?" a boy said, invoking laughs from the class.

Professor Xavier smiled. "Very true, but it's a little bit more complicated than just that, Brandon. Now, I am going to write some problems up on the board and I will be calling on some of you to come up and complete it." At some of the students' worried looks, he said quickly, "Don't worry; this will not count on your grade. I'm just making sure that you remember so that we can continue on." With that, he turned to the chalkboard behind him and began scribbling some problems up on the board. Turning around, he glanced around the room. "Okay . . . Brandon," he said, looking at the boy who had made the comment earlier. The boy groaned, but stood and walked up to the board, beginning to work on the first problem. "Carletta." A tall girl with long, flowing red hair stood and walked up to the board. "And . . ." His gaze landed on Brianna. "Oh, you must be new," he said. He looked down at his sheet. "Brianna Olsen?"

Brianna nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Why don't you come up and try the last problem."

She nodded and stood, walking up to the board. She bit her lip and looked over the problem. This had been what they were studying at her old school before she had left. Now it just looked like a long messy problem. She glanced over at the other students, they seemed to be having just as hard a time. She looked back at her problem and began working it out. She managed to finish before the other students, but it had still been hard.

Professor Xavier walked up beside her, examining her work. "Excellent, Brianna." He quickly scratched out another problem next to her completed one. "Why don't you try this one?" She walked over, glanced at it, and then wrote down the answer after thinking about it for a few moments. She looked at Xavier, who was nodding, smiling. He quickly wrote down a problem, this time not long division. Scanning it, she quickly wrote down the answer. Xavier pursed his lips, thinking, and then wrote down a problem consisting of 'x'. "Solve for 'x'," was all he said.

She looked at it, her eyes looking at the problem, the numbers spinning through her head. After a moment, she wrote down the answer, using the basics she had been taught. "Is that right?" she asked, looking at Xavier, whose eyebrows had risen.

"You just did Algebra," he said, looking at her. "That was very advanced."

Brianna shrugged. "The numbers just made sense. I don't know why."

"I would like to speak to you after class."

"Yes, sir," she said, nodding.

"You may return to your seat."

She walked back to her seat, sitting down. _Those numbers had just made sense! But, that was really advanced, how did I manage to do it?_

"How'd you do that?" Valerie asked in awe.

"I don't know," Brianna said softly, looking down at her desk.

------

As the next few days flew by, Brianna managed to surprise all of her teachers by surpassing the other students rather quickly. She figured it was because the students in the fourth year here, were a year behind what she had been doing. Professor Xavier had begun to teach her advanced math, a subject in which she was particularly skilled in. "Keep up at that rate, and you'll be top of our class in no time!" Carrie had commented after school one day.

"Your day went well?" her father asked as they drove home.

"Oh, yes," Brianna said, smiling. "I really love it here. And I'm doing very well in school."

"Yes, the headmaster called today, just before I left from work," her father said, smiling.

"What'd he say?"

"He told me that you are flying through all your classes and that you are a very exceptional young lady." At this, Brianna beamed with pride. "And, he also said, that he is going to move you up a grade, because this is far too easy for you."

Her eyes widened. "Wow." Then she frowned. "But what about the trip to the zoo?" she asked. She had been really looking forward to it.

"You still will be able to go."

She smiled, relieved. "Brilliant!" she exclaimed. Then she saddened. "But what about my friends?"

Her father squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, Brianna. You'll still be able to see them."

"But it won't be the same."

"But think, Brianna, you can make a load of new friends and you might even get a bit of a challenge in school!"

"True," she admitted, but she was still feeling slightly sad. _It was true that I haven't known them for that long, but . . . well, it is a new school, and even though I love my teachers here, I suppose that I ought to give it a go. _"Okay, Father."

"Good," her father said, smiling. "Your mother and I are very proud of you, Brianna."

Brianna beamed with pride. "Thanks!"

------

"Now, today we will be working with polynomials," Professor Tetara, her Pre-Algebra teacher explained to the class. As the professor explained about polynomials, Brianna glanced around at all the older students. It was really strange, being here and being the youngest out of the entire class. Several of the students had given her odd looks, but hadn't said anything thus far. However, she could tell that they were interested.

Suddenly an alarm rang shrilly throughout the classroom, making everyone jump at least six feet into the air. "What's that?" Brianna asked, looking around.

"Alright, everyone, file out. You know the drill," Professor Tetara said calmly, herding the students out of the high school and into the courtyard. Brianna's eyes widened as she saw the flames covering half of the building.

"What happened?" she asked, staring at the flames.

"Something about a gas leak in the chem lab," an older girl said. "That's what I thought I heard the teachers talk about."

Brianna, along with the rest of the school, crept closer to the side of the school where the fire was burning brightly. _Where was the fire department?_ As Brianna watched the flames crawl around the sides of the school, a sudden realization hit her. _Fire! I can . . . no, I don't know. I only did it that once, and that weird enough! But, maybe, I can do something to keep it from spreading._ Brianna closed her eyes, having absolutely no clue as to what she was doing, and just tried to think of the fire.

"Look at that!" someone cried. "The fire's not spreading!"

"How odd!" another exclaimed.

Brianna opened her eyes and smiled. _How had I done that?_ She wondered, looking at the fire, which now seemed to have decided to stay in one place.

She stood from the distance, watching amongst the rest of the students as the firefighters took care of the fire.

-----

Seven Privet Drive was a bustle of activity on Friday morning, due to the fact that Brianna had overslept and was now rushing to get ready to go to the zoo, and Maria and Terrance had been bouncing off the walls all morning.

"Come on! Here, here!" her mother cried as she handed Maria and Terrance their lunches and herded them out the door. Her mother walked them to the twins' preschool, since it was very nearby.

Brianna, with a piece of toast in her mouth, quickly pulled on her Mary Janes and, grabbing her bag, flew out the door after her father, jumping into the car.

------

After a quick goodbye at school, Brianna rushed over to where the bus was waiting to take the students to the London Zoo.

"Brianna!" she heard a familiar voice cry.

Brianna smiled as she recognized the voice, looking over to see Valerie running over to her. "Hi!" Brianna said happily.

Mabel and Carrie, who had been running after Valerie, grinned when they saw Brianna. "Hi, Brianna!" Mabel said.

"You ready for the zoo?" Carrie asked excitedly as they climbed aboard the bus and found seats in the middle. Brianna sat down next to Valerie and Mabel and Carrie sat across the aisle.

"I can't wait!" Brianna said, grinning. "I love animals."

"I heard you moved up to the next grade; is that true?" Mabel asked.

Brianna nodded. "I did."

"Blimey! You must be really smart!" Valerie said, her eyes wide.

Brianna shrugged. "I suppose."

"Smashing. Good for you, Brianna," Carrie said, smiling.

"Thanks!" Brianna said, returning the smile.

During the ride to the zoo, Brianna was filled in on all the gossip about Lewisham Secondary School. A few kids had thought that Brianna had been expelled, but those were just rumors. For the most part, the ride was uneventful, but Brianna was grateful to have her friends talking excitedly about who was going out with who, which students pulled some pranks, and other things like that.

While Valerie, Mabel, and Carrie were talking about a new boy that had just entered Secondary School, Brianna turned her attention to the passing scenery. _Well, I suppose this will be quite an interesting trip. Dominic said that I should try to speak with the animals, and so I shall. I wonder if I will be able to? Hm . . . well, either way, this weekend I'm going to see Gabriel and Sarah, and hopefully they'll be able to explain what exactly is going on._

About a half an hour later, the bus pulled into Camden Lock, right at the edge of the Thames. There, a boat was awaiting their arrival. It took them across the Thames, past Little Venice, and up to a large dock in front of the main entrance of the London Zoo.

As they departed the boat, they gathered in a large group, waiting for their chaperone, who was none other than Professor Xavier, Brianna's old math professor.

Brianna looked back at the Thames and smiled. The boat ride had been interesting, for she had never been on a boat before. While nervous, Valerie, Mabel, and Carrie were there to reassure her that it was perfectly safe. Looking back at the main entrance of the zoo, she could feel her excitement rising inside. She couldn't wait to see the animals!

"Listen up, everyone!" Brianna turned her attention to where Professor Xavier was standing in front of their group. He beckoned them closer. Brianna pulled her scarf tight, rubbing her gloved hands. While it wasn't too chilly, there was a slight bite in the wind. "Okay, now what we're going to do is visit as many of the different Houses as we can, but unfortunately, we cannot see the Birds of Prey Show, for they normally do it outside, and it is too cold." Several of the students groaned at this. "But –" Professor Xavier said, holding up his hands, "there are plenty of things to see, so you won't be disappointed. Follow me." He turned and the students began filing after him, walking up towards the main entrance.

Towering stone pillars framed the large arched entrance way and Brianna looked up at them in wonder as they passed through, heading over to where Professor Xavier would show their tickets.

"I can't wait to see the lions!" Carrie exclaimed, grinning. The entire group of students was chattering excitedly, and Brianna knew that she was going to have a brilliant time.

"I know! I heard there are penguins, too!" Mabel said.

"Alright, everyone! First stop, the Reptile House," Professor Xavier called.

Brianna followed the mass of students towards the large, greenhouse-like building off to the right. Looking around, she saw that there were many people at the zoo, some in large masses, others with families, or just a few together. As they walked through the glass doors, she was hit with a sudden blast of warmth.

"Hot, isn't it?" Valerie said, tugging off her scarf and gloves, putting them into her coat pocket. The rest of the students were quick to do the same.

"Okay, now since this isn't a very large building, we can split off into groups. Make sure there are at least five people to a group and in an hour meet back here at this very same spot. Understood?" Professor Xavier smiled as the students nodded in agreement.

Two boys, Nathan and Brandon, joined Valerie, Mabel, Carrie, and Brianna and they began walking around, looking at the glass tanks in wonder. Brianna walked over to one tank, looking at the large python lying lazily on a log. A heat lamp shone from the top of the tank, and the snake looked very content. She glanced at the plaque next to the cage which read : Amethystine Python, native to Australia, bred in captivity.

Brandon rapped the glass. "Aw, bloody hell, it doesn't even move. What kind of display is that?" he said, rolling his eyes. He walked over to where Nathan, Mabel, and Valerie were looking at a tank full of green snakes.

"What is that?" Carrie asked, looking at the python. "It's so huge!"

Brianna nodded. "They usually run pretty large. I read about them in this book. It said that they can grow up to twenty-eight feet!"

Carrie's eyes widened. "Blimey! That's huge!"

"Tell me about it!"

Carrie stepped over to another tank and Brianna smiled at the snake, gazing at its beautiful markings consisting of red and black blotches, the amethyst-like skin glittering in the light. "You're a really beautiful snake," she murmured. "First one I've ever seen, though."

"Thanksss."

Brianna leapt back, her eyes wide, looking around for the source of the voice. "What the -"

"I am here, before your eyesss," the voice said, with a slight hiss in its voice.

Brianna stared down at the snake, which had lifted its head to look at her. "Y-you're speaking to me – but – how is that possible? How can I understand you?" she asked. _I don't believe this! I can talk to a _snake_? I know Dominic said that I probably have a gift with animals, but snakes?_

"Yesss. You are a Parssselmouth."

"A what?"

"You can ssspeak to sssnakesss."

"I figured that much, but I'm a Parselmouth?"

"Yesss, and you can ssspeak Parssseltounge, sssnake-language."

"Bloody hell," Brianna murmured, her eyes still as wide as saucers. "I knew I had a gift with animals, but . . . so right now, I'm speaking in Parseltounge?"

"Yesss."

"First time for everything, I suppose. But, how can I be speaking a different language without knowing I can?"

"Do not asssk me. I do not know. I just underssstand what you are sssaying."

Brianna nodded. "Right."

"You are in ssschool?"

Brianna nodded, still not quite believing she was having a conversation with a python. "I go to Lewisham. I'm here on a field trip."

"Yesss, I see your other companionsss with you."

Brianna glanced over at where her friends were still looking around at the other tanks, and then looked back at the python. "I still can't believe this."

"Believe it. I sssenssse sssomething about you."

Brianna raised her eyebrows. "You do?"

"Yesss, sssomething unusssual, a rare gift. You have a gift with animalsss, yet sssomething elsse. There is a cloud of darknessss around you."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

But the snake didn't have a chance to answer for Brianna's friends decided to walk over at that moment. Brianna looked at them. "Have you been in this same spot the entire time?" Nathan asked.

Brianna shrugged. "It's a beautiful snake, I was just admiring it."

Nathan raised his eyebrows, but didn't say anything.

"Well, come on. There's more to see!" Valerie said, grabbing Brianna's hand and dragging her away from the snake. Brianna glanced back and smiled. The python nodded and Brianna quickly followed Valerie around the rest of the Reptile House. Though she didn't have a chance to test out her new-found ability, she did enjoy looking at all the different sorts of reptiles, such as the iguanas and lizards.

As the day flew on, Brianna was not alone long enough to try to attempt to talk to the animals. However, later in the day, they visited the Lion House, and while the other students were scattered around, looking at the lions, lionesses, and cubs in awe, Brianna stepped closer to the iron bars that separated the large habitat from where the students stood. Other people were milling around, looking at the animals, but Brianna hardly paid attention.

Instead, she looked at the closest lion and took a deep breath. _I wonder how I'm supposed to do this. Should I just try to talk to it?_ "Hello," she said tentatively.

To her surprise, the lion shook its beautiful mane and looked at her. If the lion could have smiled, Brianna swore he would have. "Hello," he said, his voice as strong and powerful as he looked.

"I – I've never done this before," she said softly, hoping that the other students wouldn't overhear her talking to a lion. They would think she was crazy for sure. Glancing around, making sure no one was in the near vicinity, she looked at the lion. "You're very beautiful. Is that your family?" she asked, pointing to a lioness with several cubs.

"Yes, they are mine." As the lion stepped towards her, she took a small step back, instinctive fear leaping into her chest. "Do not be afraid. I will not hurt you." _I'm talking to a lion!_ Brianna thought and smiled. She stepped carefully up to the bars, where the lion now stood. Looking around again, she slowly put her hand a few inches past the bars, stroking the lion's soft mane.

"This is brilliant!" Brianna commented, smiling. "I can't believe that I'm actually touching a lion."

"You have a gift; do not be afraid to use it," the lion said.

"I won't!" _This is amazing!_

"BRIANNA!" a voice screeched and Brianna's hand flew back. "WHAT are you DOING!" Brianna looked to see Valerie staring at her wildly. At the high-pitched screech, everyone was now looking at Brianna.

"I – I –" Brianna stammered. "I was petting the lion," she said lamely.

"What's going on here?" Professor Xavier asked, pushing his way through the crowd of people. He stopped, looking at Brianna and then at the lion that stood right behind the bars.

"Sir, Brianna was petting the lion!" Valerie said, her eyes wide.

Professor Xavier looked at Brianna sharply. "You were what?"

"I – I was petting it, sir," Brianna said. She groaned inwardly. _I sound completely insane and stupid! But I can't very well tell them that I can speak to animals!_

"There are bars there for a reason, Brianna," Professor Xavier said sternly. "Lions are very dangerous. You do _not _try to pet a lion."

"Yes, sir," Brianna said, bowing her head.

"You'll stay with me from now on," Professor Xavier said, and Brianna nodded, following him though the rest of that house and back outside.

The rest of the day, they visited the Penguin Pool, the Gorilla House, the Snowdon Aviary and the Sobell Pavilion for Monkeys and Apes. Though Brianna enjoyed seeing all the various animals, she really wished that Valerie hadn't seen her petting the lion, for she didn't have another chance to test out her ability.

------

Though the students had watched her warily for the first few hours after the lion incident, they still spoke to her and she managed to have a good time at the zoo.

As her father was driving her home, he asked about her day and she proceeded to tell him about all the amazing sights she had seen and all the different Houses. Of course, she didn't mention that she had spoken to a snake and petted a lion. She knew her father loved her, but if he didn't think she was crazy before, he would have if she had told him that.

That night, she received a letter from Gabriel and Sarah, telling her that they would pick her up in the morning so that she could visit them. All her parents knew was that Gabriel and Sarah had a house in England as well as the States, even though that was only partially true.

The next morning, Brianna waited anxiously for the Conners to arrive. "When do you think you'll be back?" her mother asked as Brianna stood in the parlor, looking out the window.

Letting go of the curtain, Brianna looked at her mother, who was standing by the base of the stairs. "I'm just staying for the afternoon and then they'll bring me home after dinner."

Her mother nodded. "Alright. You have fun, okay?" she said, smiling.

Brianna nodded, grinning. "You bet." At the sound of a 'honk' outside, Brianna cried, "They're here!"

After a hug from her mother, Brianna ran outside, clutching the books that she had borrowed. A sleek black car sat in the driveway and Gabriel stepped out, smiling as Brianna rushed towards him. She hugged him. "Hi, there," he said, laughing.

"Hi, again," Brianna said, grinning.

"Ready to go?" Gabriel asked.

Brianna nodded vigorously. "You bet."

"Good," Gabriel said, smiling. He motioned to the back door and Brianna climbed into the car.

"Hello, Brianna," Sarah said warmly.

"Hi," Brianna said, smiling.

"How have you been?"

"Brilliant!"

"That's good. Ready for a fun day?"

"Definitely!" Brianna said, grinning.

"Well, Brianna, what we were talking about as we drove to pick you up was that we have a few extra brooms that Dominic uses for Quidditch practice and since there are a few kids nearby that have not reached the age to go to Hogwarts yet, we thought that you would like to fly a little," Gabriel said, glancing into the rearview mirror.

"Really?" Brianna said, her eyes wide.

"Of course," Sarah said.

"Wicked!"

"We though that you would like that," Sarah said, smiling.

"Like it? I love it!"

"Brilliant," Gabriel said.

The car stopped and Brianna looked around at the old abandoned train station that they were now sitting at. _We couldn't have been driving that long._ "Where are we?" Brianna asked, peering out the window.

"You'll see," Gabriel said with a smile.

And, much to Brianna's shock and astonishment, Gabriel proceeded to drive the car towards a large brick wall. Brianna shut her eyes, waiting for an impact, but it never came. When she opened her eyes, she looked outside in shock. They were now driving up a curving driveway lined with huge trees that led up to the familiar manor.

"H – what just happened?" Brianna asked, her eyes wide.

"We drove through the barrier," Sarah explained. "This manor, as Gabriel must have told you, is unplottable to all Muggles, non-magic folk, and therefore we have a special barrier that enables us to come from the Muggle world into the wizarding world. There is a similar barrier at King's Cross Station, where you will pass through to get to the Hogwarts Express."

"Okay," Brianna said, still amazed at the entire experience.

Arriving in front of the manor, they stepped out and walked into the familiar entrance way. Brianna beamed. _It's wonderful to be back, _she thought. "Oh, Gabriel," she said and Gabriel turned to her. "Here are your books I borrowed." She handed the books that she had been carrying to Gabriel.

"Thank you, Brianna," he said, smiling, taking them. "Since we have a few hours until Malcolm, Graham, Natalie, Liriel, and Alex come, why don't we go to the library and you can pick out any books that you would like to take back."

"That would be brilliant," Brianna said, grinning.

"Very well," Gabriel said, smiling. She followed him to the library and there he left her to look around.

_Okay, Dominic said I should find that book called _Legendary Wizards_ and show it to Gabriel and Sarah. I suppose I'll find that one first and then read over some of these other books. It would be good to know some spells before I actually arrive at Hogwarts, since I am Muggle-born and I want to try to fit in as much as I can._

After a half an hour of searching, Brianna finally found the book that Dominic had said she should find. Setting it on the table, she began looking over the titles of the other books, selecting ones of interest.

Sitting in a comfortable chair, she drew herself into the books and read them, cover to cover, memorizing the content.

There, Gabriel found her an hour later. "I see you have been reading quite a bit," Gabriel said with a laugh, looking at the tall tower of books that sat on the floor by Brianna.

"Oh," she said, smiling, looking at the books, "I suppose I have."

"Find anything of interest?"

"Oh yes," she said, nodding vigorously. "There was something I was going to ask you, though."

"Yes?"

"Well, you know that I can speak to animals, right?"

Gabriel nodded. "Dominic mentioned that you can speak to birds. You can speak to other animals as well?"

"Yes," Brianna said, nodding. "And Dominic said that I should read about Merlin and that you would know what he was talking about."

Gabriel nodded. "I do. Let me see," he said, picking up the _Legendary Wizards_ book and rifling through the pages. He stopped and pointed. "Here."

He handed the book to Brianna and she began reading aloud. " 'The wizard Merlin was known as one of the greatest wizards of his time. Among his unusual talents, one of the most unique traits about him was that he was a natural Animagus. While Animagi usually go through extensive training to accomplish this difficult transformation, Merlin was able to do it without any training at all. It was a spontaneous occurrence and the animal that he became was a falcon. He was also able to accomplish the most complex spells without the use of a wand and, in fact, during his later years, he was rarely seen with a wand. One of his unique characteristics was his ability to converse with animals, especially the magical creatures. He was able to calm the wildest of creatures and could even sleep in a den of lions as a brother. He had a deep understanding of magical creatures and animals alike.' That's just like me," Brianna said, looking up at Gabriel.

"Indeed," Gabriel said, nodding. "You have a rare gift with animals."

"Does that include snakes?"

Gabriel seemed taken back by this question, but he quickly recovered. "Well . . . no. The ability to speak with snakes is a very different and extremely rare gift."

Brianna's eyebrows raised. "Really? Well, now, that's quite odd."

"What do you mean?"

"I – I can speak to snakes," she managed, unsure as to how Gabriel was going to react, even if he was a wizard.

At this comment, however, his eyes widened tremendously and he even took a step back. _What'd I say? Is it really that rare?_ "You can . . . speak to snakes?" Gabriel asked, swallowing.

Brianna nodded. "Yes. What's wrong with it?"

"Oh – oh, nothing," Gabriel stammered, the first time she had ever seen him flustered. "It is just a rare talent. Not many witches or wizards can speak Parseltounge."

"There's something bad about it, isn't there?" Brianna said, sensing his fear.

"Well, I . . ."

"Just tell me, Gabriel."

He sighed, taking a deep breath. "The ability to speak Parseltounge is the mark of a Dark witch or wizard." Brianna's eyes widened and he held up his hand. "That does not necessarily mean that every Parselmouth was dark, but all the recorded Parselmouths were. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was a Parselmouth."

"Oh, my God," Brianna said in shock. "Am I a Dark witch?"

"No, no, of course not!" Gabriel said hurriedly. "You have a gift with animals; this could just be an extended part of that gift."

"But you said it was a different ability."

"Well, yes, but perhaps you are just extremely talented. Now, has anything else odd happened?" he asked, desperate to switch off the subject of Parselmouths.

"Well, I have a thing with fire. You know that I was played with that fire in our living room back in New York City, but recently, at school, there was a fire and I – I, well, I don't know how exactly to explain it, but it was as if I stopped the fire, preventing it from spreading."

Gabriel nodded. He was quiet for a few moments and then took a deep breath. "Brianna, you are what we call an Elemental. It's not too rare of an occurrence in the wizarding world, but it's still unique. With this, you have the ability to converse with animals and you have control over fire."

Brianna nodded, as it made sense. "Alright, that's understandable, but it doesn't explain why I'm a Parselmouth."

Gabriel winced and Brianna wished she hadn't brought that subject up again. "I would advise you not to be saying anything about your ability to speak with snakes. Many look upon that trait as a sign of the Dark Arts, and while I know you are not even remotely affiliated with the Dark Arts, other witches and wizards that do not know you as I do, would think otherwise."

"Okay," Brianna said, nodding.

"Harry Potter has the ability to speak Parseltounge, and he is a very good wizard; however, he was not born with this ability; he only received it when You-Know-Who tried to kill him."

Brianna nodded. "Right." Brianna thought about what she had read. "Do you think it's possible I could be an Animagus? I mean, with my ability to speak to animals and all."

Gabriel looked thoughtful and didn't speak for a few minutes. Finally, he said, "It is a very far-fetched thought, but possible."

"How do I know for sure?"

Gabriel shrugged. "I am sorry that I cannot answer that question," he said helplessly. "I wish that I could. Once you go to Hogwarts, however, you can speak with the Transfiguration professor, Professor McGonagall, who is an Animagus herself, and she may be able to help you in that department."

Brianna nodded. "Okay, thank you."

------

After lunch, Gabriel took her outside.

"Alright. I am going to show you the basics, so that it will be a little easier when you meet the other kids later," Gabriel said, smiling. He handed Brianna a Firebolt. "Now, first thing, is to be able to mount your broom."

Gabriel took his broom and showed her how to mount it.

"Like this?" she asked as she mimicked his movements.

He smiled. "Yes. Now, to rise, you simple push off, like this." He pushed with his feet and hovered just above the ground.

Brianna gripped her broom tightly and pushed off. Immediately, she hugged the broom tightly with her arms and legs as she was off the ground and scared to death that she was going to fall. "How do I not fall?"

Gabriel smiled, moving over next to her. "Trust me." She looked at him wide-eyed, but allowed him to take her and move her to a sitting position. "Try to balance over your broom and see if you can move forward."

Brianna nodded and inched the broom forward. "Look! I'm doing it!" Suddenly she lost her balance and fell off the broom, landing face-first onto the pitch. "Or not," she said, rubbing her face as she sat up.

Gabriel landed and hurried over to her, helping her to her feet. "Are you alright?"

"Fine." Brianna wiped the dirt from her face and chuckled. "First crash-landing off a broom. Let's keep going." She smiled and mounted her broom again.

Gabriel laughed. "At least you keep trying, that is good." He mounted his broom as well and, after a few more times of falling and hovering, Brianna finally got the hang of staying on her broom. She wasn't very steady, but at least she wasn't falling quite as often.

"Now, to rise, you simple pull up on the broom, to descend, push down."

Brianna nodded and tried this but as soon as her broom rose a bit; she hugged it tightly once again, shutting her eyes. Gabriel waited patiently as she took a few deep breaths and slowly began to sit up. She was grateful Gabriel had charmed the broom so that it would only rise a few feet. That way, it didn't hurt as bad when she fell.

Hours later, Brianna walked back to the manor with Gabriel, thoroughly sore and feeling bow-legged from riding on the broom.

"I think you will be fine, Brianna," Gabriel said as they walked, smiling down at her. "You managed to stay on your broom a lot longer and since you've read_ Quidditch Throughout the Ages_, you should know enough to be able to keep up with the others."

Brianna smiled. "I hope so. Thanks a lot, for teaching me, Gabriel."

"It was my pleasure." He smiled, leading her inside.

-------

Later that day, Brianna stood out on the field, a Firebolt clutched in her grasp. She looked around at Malcolm, Graham, Natalie, Liriel, and Alex, who were chatting amongst themselves. All these kids knew was that she was visiting the Conners and assumed she was a cousin or something. She wasn't going to mention that she was actually a Muggle-born, for Gabriel and Sarah had both advised against it, saying that it would create trouble, especially since most Muggle-borns were looked down upon by the wizarding community.

She took a deep breath. _Come on, Brianna, you can do this. Don't be nervous. _Walking over to the group, she said, a smile on her face, "Hi, my name is Brianna."

The group of kids looked at her. The tallest girl, a brunette with matching eyes, smiled. "Hi, my name is Liriel Vantura; I'll be going to Hogwarts in two years."

"So will I!" Brianna exclaimed, her nervousness ebbing.

"Brilliant! Then we'll already know each other!" Liriel said warmly.

"That's always good."

"I'm Natalie McDonald," the shorter, dark-haired girl said, smiling.

"Hello."

"I'm Malcolm Maddock," the tall boy with jet-black hair introduced and then pointed to the other two boys, both with dusty blond hair. The one with darker eyes didn't smile but the one with blue eyes flashed Brianna a grin and the last of her nervousness disappeared. "This is Graham Pritchard and Alex Nott."

"Hello," Brianna said, looking at the boys.

Graham merely nodded while Alex gave her a smile and a "Hi," back.

"Graham, Natalie, and I are going to Hogwarts this fall," Malcolm said and Brianna nodded. "Alex will be going next year along with you and Liriel."

"Well, that's good that I know a few people before I start. That'll certainly help," Brianna said, feeling a bit more at ease as they talked.

"Just as long as you aren't in Gryffindor," Malcolm said with a slight sneer.

"What do you mean?" Brianna asked, confused.

"Oh, Malcolm and Graham's families have all been in Slytherin so that's the house that they probably will be Sorted into," Natalie said, rolling her eyes. "Don't mind them."

"What's so bad about Gryffindor?"

"Slytherin and Gryffindor have always been rivals," Liriel explained.

Brianna nodded. "Right."

"These three aren't that bad, though," Natalie said, "once you get to know them. Just because they might be in that house, doesn't really mean a thing."

"That's a relief."

"Well, shall we begin playing?" Malcolm asked, looking at the girls. "Or are we going to stand around all day admiring the weather?"

"We weren't admiring the weather, Malcolm," Natalie said, rolling her eyes. "We were just discussing how we were going to flatten you in Quidditch."

"Oh, really?" Malcolm said, raising an eyebrow. "Is that so? We'll see about that."

"Okay, so this is what we do," Graham said. "Two of us can be Chasers, one of the Chasers can also play Keeper, and then we'll each have a Seeker."

Brianna sorted through her memory, recalling all the things that she had learned about Quidditch. _I should be fine. I suppose we'll just have to see. Thank God I read that book, or I'd really be at a loss and I'd never fit in. These five seem like they've been playing Quidditch all of their life._ "Girls against guys?" Brianna asked.

"Of course," Natalie said. She turned to Liriel and Brianna. "Okay, so this is what we do. Brianna, you're pretty tall, but slender, so I think you'll make a good Seeker. Liriel and I will be Chasers. You know what to do, right?" Natalie asked, looking at Brianna, who nodded.

"Catch the Snitch before the other Seeker."

"Exactly," Natalie said. She turned to the boys. "Let's go."

They mounted their brooms and Natalie released the Quaffle and the Snitch. The Snitch passed briefly in front of Brianna and Alex and the flitted out of sight. They rose into the air and Brianna held on for dear life. _Oh my God, I'm flying._ She could feel her insides rolling with nervousness and she prayed that she wouldn't fall off. She watched, gripping the broom in an iron-grip, as the other kids sped around the pitch, passing the Quaffle between them. _How do they do that so easily? I suppose that they probably have been playing all of their lives, but still . . . I feel like a complete idiot out here._

Alex pulled up next to her. "You look nervous," he said. He smiled. "Don't worry, you'll be fine."

"Thanks. I – I've never flown before."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "Really? Blimey, I thought all witches and wizards learned to fly early on."

Brianna shrugged, as well as she could and still hold onto her broom. "I never had a chance to."

Alex nodded. "Well, that's alright. You know all about Quidditch, though?"

Brianna nodded. "Oh yes, everything. Are you going to the World Cup this summer?"

Alex nodded vigorously. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

"It's going to be brilliant!"

"More than that," Alex said, grinning. "With Bulgaria and Ireland? It's going to be wicked! I can't wait to see Viktor Krum pull the Wronski Feint out on the pitch!"

Brianna nodded. "Krum is Bulgaria's Seeker, right?"

Alex nodded. "Right."

Suddenly a gold flash caught her eye and, after praying to whatever deity was watching over her to protect her, she sped after the Snitch, Alex hot on her trail.

As she grew closer to the flitting golden ball, she realized an awful thought. _I have to take one of my hands off the broom! Please protect me!_ She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath and reopened them, slowly taking a hand off of the Firebolt. Suddenly the Snitch flew right before her face and she swept her hand down, feeling the cool metal in her closed fist. _Oh my God, I just caught the Snitch!_

"I caught it!" she yelled in shock, staring at it, and the other kids stopped, looking at her.

"Congratulations!" Natalie cried. "Take that!" she said, looking at Malcolm, who just rolled his eyes.

"Best out of three, McDonald!" Malcolm yelled and the game presumed, Brianna releasing the Snitch.

As the hours flew by, Brianna became more assured of herself and found that she loved flying. It made her feel free and unobstructed. Though she didn't manage to catch the Snitch again, everyone was really friendly and even Graham gave her a smile by the end of it.

------

After a nice dinner with Gabriel and Sarah, they took her home, another pile of books in her arms. With a promise to write, Brianna said goodbye to the Conners and entered her home. Immediately, she was barraged by Maria and Terrance, demanding that she tell them how her day was. Her parents stood off to one side, watching the display with smiles on their faces.

"I had a great time," Brianna said. "I found some more books and I have a new story I can tell you."

"Yea!" Maria cried.

"When?" Terrance asked.

"If you go up to bed like you're supposed to, I'll tell it to you tonight."

"Okay!" they cried and ran up the stairs.

"Welcome back, Brianna," her mother said warmly, enveloping her in a hug.

"Did you have fun?" her father asked, smiling.

"Oh, yes," Brianna said, grinning. "One of the best days ever."

"That's wonderful," her mother said.

"We played this game and I did really well, but I'm quite sore, so I think I'm going to head up and take a warm bath," Brianna said.

"Oh, of course," her mother said, nodding.

"The Conners are wonderful people," her father said. "I'm glad that you were given a chance to stay with them today."

Brianna nodded. "Thanks for letting me."

"It wasn't a problem," her father said, smiling.

Brianna nodded and made her way upstairs, her muscles groaning in protest. She dumped her books on her bed and entered the bathroom.

After a long soak in the hot water, she felt immensely better and for Maria and Terrance's story that night, she told them about Merlin, obviously not mentioning the fact that he had truly existed. Even she was still amazed, after all she had found out about the wizarding world. She had read about Merlin in King Arthur books, but she had never realized that he might have actually existed. She learned new things every day.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Nothing mine. etc etc. All JKRs **

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**Chapter Nine**

**-Portkeys and Pyros-**

As the months flew by and spring drew closer, Brianna was adjusting to the new country and the people. It was still different, and a few of the customs still threw her occasionally, but she was beginning to fit in. She had made a lot of friends at school. Sure, there were the few that she hadn't gotten along with in the beginning and probably would never get along with, but she was alright with that. She tried not to associate herself with a specific group and at least made an attempt to get along with everyone.

School had been tough in the beginning, as she had been skipped a grade, but now it was a lot easier and she had moved quickly up to the top 10 of her class. She loved school and it showed, with her awards and all the activities she was constantly involved in. Science was hard and she had tutoring after school to help her with that and she definitely wasn't that good in sports. She had hated gym in her other school because of Bobby and his friends, so even here, where there weren't bullies in her class, she still didn't like it very much. Learning Quidditch and having played some of that, her liking of sports had increased and when she was over at the Conners, she continued to practice on her flying, finally getting to the point that she didn't fall of her broom anymore.

With the help of Gabriel and Sarah, she managed to learn a little more control over her fire ability, but when she got to Hogwarts, she'd have to go through a lot more training. They had also taught her some of the basic spells, letting her use Dominic's old wand. Though the spells didn't work very well, because of the fact that she was only ten and it wasn't really her wand, she still could get them to work occasionally, just weaker. She and Dominic continued to write to each other, telling about their schools. They were becoming closer and Brianna felt like she could always confide in him, trusting him completely.

Early April began with warmer days and the arrival of Dominic. Brianna waited in the entrance hall at the Conner Estate, waiting anxiously.

The door opened and Dominic walked in, dragging his Hogwarts' trunk and cage with Yoddle, his tawny owl. "Dominic!" Brianna cried and rushed over to him, enveloping him in a huge hug.

"Hiya, Brianna," Dominic said, laughing and, after setting down his cage and trunk, returning the hug. They pulled away. "I haven't been gone that long, have I?"

Brianna grinned. "It's been four months."

"And so it has," Dominic said, smiling. "But there were letters."

Brianna shrugged. "It's not the same."

"No, I suppose its not."

"So, how much homework did you get dumped on you this time?" Brianna asked as they walked up the stairs, Dominic carting his trunk and Brianna carrying Yoddle's cage.

"Oh, the usual amount. Too much for a sane person to handle."

"But you're not sane," Brianna said, looking at him sideways.

Dominic laughed. "Perhaps not, but it's still a load of work."

Brianna grinned and nodded. "Sounds like it. I mean, it's just so much work for that little brain to handle." She reached up to tap his head and he pulled away, laughing.

"Oh, you just wait till you go to school! Then you won't be able to nag me about all my homework."

Brianna laughed as they stepped into his room, depositing his things at the foot of his bed. "I also wanted to say 'Happy Birthday', since you turned thirteen last week. Maria and Terrance both turned five last month, and you should have seen their faces when they opened the presents that you gave them. They were both thrilled that their lunchboxes kept changing colors and that their names would write themselves across the fronts. Of course," Brianna said, laughing, "it was interesting having to explain to my parents that they were just made that way; nothing too unusual."

Dominic laughed. "Sounds like fun." He paused and then smirked. "Pyro."

"What did you just call me?" Brianna asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Pyro."

She placed her hands on her hips. "Dominic Francis Conner, just because I happen to have a gift with fire does _not_ make me a pryo."

Dominic nodded. "Oh, yes it does. Pyros like fire; you like fire; Pyros play with fire; you play with fire. Therefore, you are a pyro."

"Oohh, you're going to pay for that one, Dominic!" Brianna cried and quickly grabbed two of the pillows off of Dominic's bed. She threw them at him, hitting him squarely in the face.

"Hey, what was that for?" he asked, trying to act serious, but a laugh escaped his lips.

"You called me a pyro," Brianna said, holding up two more pillows.

"But you are!" She quickly hit him with the two pillows. "Come on, I don't even get a chance to defend myself?"

"You can anytime."

Dominic grinned wickedly. "Okay." He whipped out his wand and pointed them at the pillows. "_Accio _pillows!" he yelled and all the pillows flew at him. He snatched them out of the air and began throwing them at Brianna.

"Not fair! You used magic!" Brianna cried, but she was laughing.

"You never said I couldn't," Dominic said, smirking.

"Only a Slytherin would do that."

Dominic raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really?"

Brianna nodded. "Really." _Stall, stall, let me think, what were some of those spells that I read about? Of course, with this wand, those spells don't always work very well, so . . . this probably won't work, but it's worth a shot._ _Oh! Haha! The Tickling Charm!_

"Well, that's just not fair. You can't stereotype me just because I'm a Slytherin," Dominic said, his arms crossed in front of his chest.

"Wanna bet?" She grinned, her wand appearing in her hand. "_Rictusempra!"_ she yelled, not expecting anything to happen, so imagine her shock when Dominic actually collapsed onto the floor, laughing uncontrollably and clutching his sides.

"Brianna!" he gasped through fits of laughter. "Please!"

She stood over him, her arms crossed. "Not till you promise to not call me a pyro."

"I – I promise!" he gasped.

"Swear?" He nodded and she shrugged. "Okay. _Finite Incantatem._"

Dominic took in several breaths, lying on the floor. Then he stood, giving her an odd look. "How did you manage that?"

"I wrote you that letter explaining what I could do, right?" Dominic nodded. "He's been helping me learn some basic spells with the help of your old wand. They don't always work out so well, but at least I'm learning them. Once I get my own wand, it'll help a lot."

"Your Tickling Charm was good, though, so . . . well, good job. Didn't expect that one," Dominic said, smiling. Then he smirked. "Pyro."

"Dominic!" Brianna cried, trying to give him an angry look but failing.

He held up his hands. "Just kidding. I'm going to go downstairs for food. Coming?"

Brianna nodded. "Of course; its food."

Dominic walked towards the hall, stopping in the doorway and turning to her. "Pryo."

"You're going to get it, Dominic!" she yelled, running towards him.

"Uh- oh!" Dominic eyes widened. "Help! Mad pyro after me!" he yelled, sprinting into the hall and towards the stairs. Brianna chased him after him, finally skidding to a halt in the dining room, ramming into Dominic, who had stopped. He stumbled, but didn't fall. She peered around his shoulder and, since she just came up to his shoulder, he made a good shield.

Gabriel and Sarah were standing in the dinning room, looking at Dominic and Brianna, their eyebrows raised. Then Gabriel laughed. "You two look like you were having fun." Sarah just shook her head, trying to control her laughter.

Brianna stepped out from behind Dominic. "He called me a pyro. I was just giving him what he deserved."

Gabriel laughed. "Pyro, huh?"

"Well, shall we eat lunch? Or are we going to stand here all day?" Sarah asked, smiling.

"Food!" Dominic cried and rushed to the table, sitting down. A plate of food appeared in front of him and he began eating rapidly.

Gabriel, Sarah, and Brianna laughed, taking seats. As her plate appeared in front of her, Brianna watched as Dominic finished off his plate and another one appeared in place of the empty one. He began eating again, only pausing to take a sip of his pumpkin juice.

"What do they do at Hogwarts, starve you?" Brianna asked with a laugh.

Dominic shook his head, swallowing. "No, it's just that I slept in this morning, so no breakfast, and all they have on the train is sweets and that doesn't fill me up at all."

"You are going to make yourself sick, Dominic," Sarah said chidingly. "Slow down."

"Once I'm full, Mother," Dominic said with a smile and finished off his plate. Another appeared and, after finishing it, he finally sat back. "Okay, now I'll slow down."

Brianna just shook her head, laughing. "I swear you have a bottomless pit for a stomach."

Dominic shrugged. "Perhaps."

"Do you have a load of homework again, Dominic?" Gabriel asked.

Dominic nodded. "Of course."

"How as Quidditch been going?" Sarah asked.

"Good, we managed to win our matches against Ravenclaw, but Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw, so now they're in second place. But Harry Potter managed to get a Firebolt," Dominic said with a slight sneer.

"I take it that you don't like Harry Potter?" Brianna asked.

At looks from his parents, Dominic only shrugged. "It's just that he usually gets a lot of things and it's not very fair to the rest of us. Anyways, we have the final match for the House Cup coming up in a few weeks, so it should be very interesting."

Brianna nodded. "It sounds like it. Did they manage to capture Sirius Black, yet?" Brianna asked, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"No, not yet. They've got Dementors crawling all over the place, though," Dominic said, shuddering. "It's really horrible when we go to Hogsmeade, since we have to walk right past them."

"Those are the guards from Azkaban, right?" Brianna asked.

"Yes," Gabriel said, "they drain any happy thoughts away and they feed on despair."

Brianna swallowed. "I'm glad I don't ever have to see one."

"Be grateful you don't," Dominic said, still looking uneasy on the subject.

"Well," Sarah said, looking around, "on towards happier thoughts. How have your classes been going?"

Dominic shrugged. "Alright. We've got finals in a month and I have a feeling I'm going to do pretty well in DADA."

"DADA?" Brianna asked.

"Defense Against the Dark Arts," Dominic explained.

"Oh," Brianna said, nodding. "Is the class really good?"

Dominic nodded, smiling. "Our professor, Professor Lupin? He's wicked! He's such a brilliant teacher and DADA is easily my most favorite class. I think all the rest of the students would agree."

"It sounds very interesting," Brianna said, smiling. "Will I have him for a professor?"

Dominic shrugged. "Can't guarantee that. No one has lasted more than a year in the DADA job. Some people say it's cursed."

"Rubbish, of course," Gabriel put in.

Dominic just shrugged.

"Cursed?" Brianna asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That is just rumors from the other students," Sarah said and gave Dominic a pointed look. "There is no truth to it."

Brianna nodded, but she wasn't too sure.

-------

After lunch, Dominic led Brianna outside, telling her that he wanted to show her something. As they walked through the forest, neither of them said anything.

Finally, they reached a large clearing. Dominic whistled a long, melodious sound. "Now watch," Dominic whispered.

And, to Brianna's wonder and awe, a beautiful pure-white unicorn came out of the edge of the forest and stopped in front of them. "A unicorn!" Brianna whispered in shock.

"Yes, she is one of the few that inhabit the woods on the estate," Dominic said. "If she'll let you, you might be able to touch her."

Brianna nodded. "I remember reading that unicorns are more likely to allow a witch to approach than a wizard."

"Right," Dominic said, smiling. "Do you remember everything you read?"

Brianna nodded. "Everything, well as much as I can."

"Bloody hell," Dominic whispered. "That's amazing."

Brianna smiled, turning her attention to the unicorn. "Hello," she said softly.

"Hello," the unicorn replied.

Brianna grinned. _It really is true! I can speak to magical creatures as well! This is brilliant!_ "You're very beautiful."

"Thank you," the unicorn said, dipping her head.

Dominic looked between Brianna and the unicorn, his eyes wide. "You're actually _speaking_ to it?"

Brianna nodded. "I told you that I could speak to magical creatures."

"Right," Dominic said, still amazed.

She looked back at the unicorn. "Can I pet you?" Brianna asked slowly.

"Of course," the unicorn said and Brianna approached the unicorn cautiously, reaching out to stroke the silky mane.

"It's so soft!"

"Yes," the unicorn said, looking at Brianna with her left eye. "I sense something about you, child."

"What do you mean?" Brianna asked, still running her fingers through the silky tresses.

"You are gifted with the ability to speak with animals, being an Elemental, but . . . although you are very happy and carefree, something dark clouds you."

Brianna looked at the unicorn questioningly. _That was the second time one of the creatures has told me that! First the snake . . . then this unicorn. What do they mean?_ "Dark?" The unicorn bobbed her head in a nod. "But wouldn't I notice?"

"I do not know, child; I just know what I sense. There will come a time where you will have to confront this darkness."

Suddenly something startled the unicorn and she fled. "Wait!" Brianna yelled, but the unicorn disappeared into the forest. _What did she mean?_

"What just happened?" Brianna asked, looking back at Dominic, who shrugged.

"Unicorns spook easily."

"I suppose," Brianna said, not really believing that because from what she had read, unicorns did _not_ spook easily, looking at the spot where the unicorn had disappeared into the forest.

--------

The next two months flew by and soon it was the beginning of July and she would be leaving the very next day for the World Cup.

After her parents told her to be good and have fun, the Conners arrived to pick her up to take her back to the estate. Since they would be leaving early the next morning, Gabriel felt that it was in all of their best interests to have Brianna there the night before.

"So, how does everyone get there without all the Muggles noticing?" Brianna asked as they ate breakfast. She stifled a yawn, from having to wake up at five o'clock that morning.

"Well, you see, hundreds wizards turn out for this event and so, to accommodate this," Gabriel explained. "we find a large deserted area, where there isn't as large a chance for Muggles to find us. It's not unplottable, but the Ministry takes many anti-Muggle precautions, working to get it ready. There are several ways to arrive and we have to be careful not to draw too much attention. By staggering the arrivals, so that we don't have hundreds of wizards show up at once, it helps. About two weeks ago, the people with the cheaper tickets arrived, setting up camp. Since we have wizards arriving from all over the world, we tend to limit Muggle transportation. Just think, if those Muggles saw hundreds of wizards boarding at train!" he laughed.

Brianna chuckled but didn't say anything. She knew _exactly_ how certain people would act.

"Many of the wizards can Apparate and so we have safe points for those and for those witches and wizards that cannot Apparate, we have what we call, Portkeys. They're inanimate objects that can transport one from one spot to another, instantly at a prearranged time. They're placed at strategic locations around Britian and we will be using one at the abandoned train station.

"Is that how you get to work in New York City?" Brianna asked.

Gabriel smiled. "Yes, I use a Portkey that transports me to Central Park; in fact, it connects to the pavilion where we found you."

Brianna thought back to that night when the Conners had found her, and tried to recall if she had seen anything out of the ordinary. The only thing she remembered, however, was that there had been an old shoe lying on the floor of the pavilion, but, of course, that wasn't strange at all.

"What sorts of objects are Portkeys?" Brianna asked, still thinking about that shoe.

"Well, they can be anything," Sarah said. "Unobtrusive things, obviously, for we could not have Muggles picking them up and playing with them. Just think what would happen! So, Portkeys are usually things that Muggles would mistake for litter and just ignore."

"Like old shoes?"

"Yes, that is one that is used more often than not," Sarah said, nodding.

_So, that's it! That old shoe was a Portkey!_ "So, why can't we Apparate?"

"You have to pass extensive tests given by the Department of Magical Transportation," Gabriel said. "It is not very easy, and when it is not done properly, it can have nasty complications. There have been incidents in which people have only Apparated half of their bodies, leaving the other half behind."

Brianna swallowed hard. "That doesn't sound very pleasant."

"Not at all," Sarah said.

They finished the rest of breakfast in silence, even Dominic was quiet, for he was too busy trying to keep his eyes open.

As they walked down the road that led from the manor to the barrier, Brianna smoothed the folds out of her T-shirt and shorts. They were all in Muggle clothing, so that they would not look out of place. Stepping through the barrier, Brianna was still amazed at the process, but didn't have time to think about it, for they had to search for the Portkey.

She glanced up at the clear sky where it was beginning to lighten due to the rising of the sun. A refreshing breeze swept through her long hair, which she had pulled into a ponytail. It was warm already, but pleasant. Brianna could feel the excitement leaping in her chest. _I can't wait!_ she thought excitedly.

"Here, Father! I found it!" Dominic called and they walked over to where Dominic was holding a rusty pipe.

_A pipe? Interesting._ "Oy! Dominic!" They turned to see Malcolm, Alex, a tall boy with dark hair, and two adults, walking towards them.

"Malcolm! Alex! Brandon!" Dominic greeted, becoming more alert.

"So, I see you're using the same Portkey," the tall boy, who must have been Brandon, said. He looked at Brianna and his eyebrows lifted. He smiled. "And who is this?"

"Oh," Dominic said, "of course. Brianna, this is Brandon Nott. Brandon, this is Brianna; she's going to the World Cup with us. She's been visiting us the past few days."

"A relation?" Brandon asked.

Dominic shrugged. "You could say that."

_Thanks, Dominic_, Brianna thought. _If they knew I was a Muggle-born, I'd be out of luck._ "So, are you ready for the World Cup, Brianna?" Malcolm asked.

She grinned. "Of course. It's going to be wicked!"

"Tell me about it," Alex said, grinning as well. "With Krum playing for Bulgaria, it's going to be a tough competition."

Brianna nodded. "They're playing Ireland, right?"

"Yes," Brandon said, nodding. "And Ireland's going to win!"

Brianna glanced over at where the adults were speaking. "Are those your parents?" she asked.

"Yep," Alex said. "Brandon and I are brothers."

"Oh," Brianna said, nodding. "Okay." She looked at Malcolm. "Are your parents coming?"

Malcolm shook his head. "No, they're in Romania with the dragons; that's what they do, study dragons."

"Wicked," Brianna said, smiling. "I hope I get to see a dragon some time."

Malcolm shrugged. "If we do another family trip to Romania, you're welcome to come with us."

"Brilliant!" she said, grinning.

"Well, everyone, are we ready?" Gabriel asked, holding up the pipe. Everyone nodded and crowded around. "Okay, now, just a finger will do. Everyone ready?" He glanced at his pocket-watch. "Three . . . two . . . one . . ."

Immediately, Brianna felt like she was being jerked upwards and she could feel the others close by. They sped forward in a howl of wind and swirling color. She could feel the pipe pulling her onward and then – she felt her feet slam into the ground. She stumbled, ramming into Dominic, who held her up so that she didn't fall. The Portkey hit the ground with a 'THUD' and Brianna looked around, her vision slowly coming back into focus. Everyone was still standing, but Alex looked slightly shaken.

"Twelve past six from Franborth Station," a voice said.


	10. Chapter 10

** Disclaimer: Nothing is owned by me except OCs :)**

**A/N: Some of this is repeat from GoF, so you are forwarned lol :D But it's, of course, from a different POV. Critical things to happen :)  
**

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Chapter Ten**

**-The Quidditch World Cup-**

Brianna looked around the stretch of misty moor that they had arrived on. In front of them stood a pair of tired and grumpy-looking wizards, one holding a large gold watch, and the other a thick roll of parchment and a quill. They were dressed in Muggle clothing, though not very well. One of them wore a tweed suit with thigh-length galoshes, and the other wore a kilt and poncho. She would have laughed if she hadn't been so tired.

"Morning, Basil," Gabriel said, handing the pipe to the kilted wizard, who threw it in a box containing other used Portkeys.

"Hello, Gabriel," Basil said tiredly. "Hang on, I'll find your campsite. . . Conner . . ." he muttered, looking at his parchment. "Okay, here we are. You'll be in the first field that you come to, about a fourth a mile's walk from here. The site manager's name is Mr. Roberts. And . . . Nott . . . okay, you'll also be in the first field."

"Thank you, Basil," Gabriel said and, following Gabriel and Mr. Nott, they all began walking across the deserted moor, the mist making it difficult to see.

After about twenty or so minutes, a small stone cottage came into view. Behind it, Brianna could see the shapes of hundreds and hundreds of tents, rising up the gentle slope of the large field toward a forest on the horizon.

She noticed a man standing in the doorway of the cottage, peering out at the tents. Brianna could tell that this man was a Muggle, probably the only one for several acres. The man turned his head to look at Gabriel.

"Morning," Gabriel said brightly.

"Morning," the Muggle said tiredly.

"You are Mr. Roberts?"

"Aye, and who're you?"

"Conner – we have a tent, booked a few days ago?"

"Aye," Mr. Roberts said, looking at a piece of paper attached to the door. "You've got the space about halfway up that slope. You'll be paying now?"

"Yes," Gabriel said, nodding. He pulled out a fold of Muggle money and paid the man.

Mr. Nott stepped forward. "Nott."

Mr. Roberts looked at the list and said, "You've got the space up by the woods."

Mr. Nott nodded and handed Mr. Roberts the fee.

"You know, it's never been this crowded," Mr. Roberts said, looking back at the moor. "People usually turn up . . . but there have been hundreds of pre-bookings."

"Really," Gabriel said.

"Seems to me like there's a big party going on or something . . ."

At that moment, a wizard Apparated next to the cottage and pointed his wand at Mr. Roberts. "_Obliviate!_" he said sharply.

Instantly, Mr. Roberts' eyes slid out of focus and a dreamy look filled his face. "Here's a map of the campsite," he said placidly, handing them the map.

"Thank you," Gabriel said and they stepped away.

Once they were out of ear-shot of the Muggle, the man that had Apparated turned to them. "We've been having a lot of trouble with him. He needs a Memory Charm ten times a day to keep him happy. Ludo Bagman isn't helping; strutting around talking about Bludgers and Quaffles, not worry about all the anti-Muggles security." The wizard sighed. "I'll be glad when this is all over. See you later, Gabriel."

He Disapparated.

"Isn't Mr. Bagman the Head of Magical Games and Sports?" Alex asked.

Gabriel nodded. "Yes, but he has always been a bit lax about security. But, he is one of the best heads we have had; he played Quidditch for England, one of the best Beaters the Wimbourne Wasps ever had."

As they walked up the slope towards their tents, Brianna looked around at the tents. Most were ordinary, but some had chimneys or weather vanes. Then, of course, there were the tents that were so obviously magical that Brianna couldn't believe no one had said anything. She saw one that looked like a castle, and then another with a front garden.

"Okay, here we are," Gabriel said, stopping at the bit of land where a small sign hammered into the ground read CONNER.

Brianna watched in fascination as Gabriel pulled out a small bit of cloth and threw it onto the ground. Immediately, it sprung up into an ordinary Muggle tent.

"Is this big enough?" Brianna asked, looking at the tent.

"Go inside," Sarah said, smiling.

Brianna gave her an odd look, but complied and let out a cry of shock. Inside, there was a living room, a small kitchen, and three bedrooms attached at the back. She stumbled out. "It's huge!"

"Yes, of course," Gabriel said, smiling. "You didn't think that all four of us would fit into one tiny room, now did you?"

Brianna just shook her head, speechless.

Dominic, who had just seemed to finally grow entirely awake, said, "Brianna, why don't we go walk around; check out everything. Then I can introduce you to some people that you'll be going to Hogwarts with."

Brianna grinned. "That would be brilliant!"

"Wonderful idea, Dominic," Sarah said, smiling.

"Yes, excellent opportunity," Gabriel agreed. "I have some business with some of the Ministry officials, but I will be back by lunch. We can all meet up then and eat. Sound good?"

"Oh, yes," Dominic said, nodding and rubbing his stomach. "Food."

Everyone laughed and Dominic led Brianna away.

"Okay, well, let's see . . . you already know Alex and Brandon . . . and Malcolm . . ." Dominic bit his lip, thinking. "Who else would be here right now? Oh! I know! Karl and Blaise should be here."

Brianna followed Dominic past a tent where two young witches were making a fire that turned multiple shades of color with their wands, and then past a very large tent with three African wizards sitting outside, wearing long white robes and roasting something on a bright purple fire. She spotted a few American witches, chatting together and was amused at how some of the witches and wizards were attempting to cook breakfast. One wizard was trying to strike a match from a matchbox and, when he failed, took out his wand, looked around, and formed a fire.

Brianna laughed quietly. "It's rather funny how hard it is for these people to do the simple things that I took for granted growing up with Muggles. I feel sorry for them."

Dominic smirked. "Well, I suppose lighting a match would seem very easy to you."

"Oy! Dominic!" they heard a voice cry. They stopped, turning around to see Malcolm and Graham running towards them.

"Malcolm! Graham! Hi!" Dominic said, smiling. He looked at Brianna. "Have you meet Graham?"

Brianna nodded, looking at the brown-haired boy. "I met him when I visited your parents. We played Quidditch."

"Oh, really?" Dominic said, raising an eyebrow. He looked at Graham. "How'd she do?"

"Not bad," Graham said with a smile.

"So, where are you both off to?" Malcolm asked as they began walking.

"I'm just checking out the campsite and introducing Brianna to some of the people she'll be going to school with," Dominic answered.

Malcolm nodded. "Well, Draco won't be here for another few hours; you know how his father is; always wants to associate himself as little as possible."

Dominic laughed. "Oh, yes, that's Mr. Malfoy for you."

"Draco Malfoy?" Brianna asked.

Dominic nodded. "Yes."

"Let's not go there," Graham said sourly, and they looked at him.

"What?" Brianna asked in confusion, looking at Graham.

He pointed to a mass of bright green tents. "That's the Ireland supporters."

"You don't want Ireland to win?" Brianna asked.

Graham raised an eyebrow. "With Krum as the Seeker for Bulgaria? Ireland will lose. What, you like Ireland or something?"

Brianna shrugged. "I just go by what I hear people say. I don't have a preference either way."

Graham looked at her oddly and then shrugged. "Well, for my opinion, go for Bulgaria."

"Yes," Malcolm said.

"Good choice, Bulgaria. Willing to make a bet?" a voice asked and they stopped, turning to face a tall wizard wearing long Quidditch robes in thick horizontal stripes of bright yellow and black. An enormous picture of a wasp was splashed across his chest. He had the look of a powerfully built man gone slightly to seed; the robes were stretched across a slightly large belly that looked out of place with his round blue eyes, short blond hair, and rosy complexion. He seemed very excited at the moment.

"Mr. Bagman!" Dominic said, smiling.

"You were a Beater for the Wimbourne Wasps, right?" Brianna asked.

Ludo Bagman smiled. "Yes, that's right. So, any of you want to make a small bet?"

"Fifty Galleons; Ireland wins," Dominic said, handing Bagman the handful of Galleons.

"Fifty Galleons; Bulgaria wins," Graham said, smirking at Dominic and placing the pile of Galleons in Bagman's hands, who quickly put them in his robes and writing down their names on a notebook. He handed them slips of paper and turned to Brianna.

"Are you going to bet?" he asked.

Brianna shrugged and pulled out a sack-full of Galleons that the Conners had given her the previous night. "Forty Galleons; Ireland wins, but Krum gets the Snitch."

Her friends looked at her like she had just grown sixty feet with rabbit ears and a cat tail. "What?" she asked, looking around at them.

They just shrugged and she looked at Bagman, who was writing down the bet, after taking the money she had given him. "Well, that's one interesting bet. What's your name?"

"Brianna."

"Okay . . . well, Brianna, you reckon Ireland will win but Krum will get the Snitch?" He chuckled. "Funny, that's the second bet like that I've received today. You and the Weasley twins sure know how to bet against all odds." He straightened, handing her the piece of paper with her bet. "Good luck and I'll see you around." He grinned and headed off towards another prospective customer.

"Nice bet, Brianna; I suppose we'll see what happens," Graham said, chuckling.

"What's wrong with it?" Brianna asked, crossing her arms.

"Oh, just that Ireland is going to lose."

"I doubt that," Dominic said. "Ireland's front three are the strongest they've been in years."

"We'll see," was all that Graham said.

As they began walking towards Karl's tent, two boys, one tall, dark-haired, the other shorter with bright red hair, ran up to them. "Hiya, Dominic. Ready for the match?" the red-haired boy asked.

Dominic grinned. "Can't wait! Blaise, this is Brianna." Blaise looked at her. "Brianna, this is Blaise Zabini; he's starting his fourth-year in the fall. And the other is Karl Lanart, a sixth-year."

Brianna nodded. "Nice to meet you."

Blaise grinned. "Likewise."

"Are you starting Hogwarts in the fall?" Karl asked.

"Next year," Brianna answered.

Karl nodded and smiled. "Well, you've managed to find some good friends so far; I suppose we'll see what House you manage to be Sorted into."

"Which house are you in?" Brianna asked.

"Oh, I'm in Slytherin. Actually, everyone here except Malcolm and Graham are Slytherins; of course, I'm sure that they'll be Sorted into our house, since their entire families have been in it."

_Slytherins? Well, they don't seem that bad,_ Brianna thought, smiling. _I suppose all those rumors are rubbish after all; but . . . Voldemort came from Slytherin . . . oh, well, I'm just thinking up nonsense. Besides, there's absolutely nothing wrong with these people._

"I suppose I'll just have to wait until the Sorting Ceremony to find out," Brianna said, shrugging.

Karl nodded, smiling. "Just like everyone else. Well," he said, looking around. "I'm going to go see if I can't find Marcus or Adrian. They did graduate two years ago, but I doubt they'd miss this." He winked at Brianna. "Hope to see you at our House table." He strode off and they began walking again, Blaise at their side.

"He's one of our prefects this year," Blaise said as they walked. "He's much better than that Weasley they had in Gryffindor a bit back; of course, my father complains that the Weasleys are always making trouble."

"You've got that right," Malcolm said.

"The Weasleys have too many children," Graham said sourly. "It's unbelievable. I mean, what they call a house is hardly anything."

"You know, they managed to get tickets for tonight," Blaise said, sneering. "Top Box too." He chuckled. "Draco's going to be thrilled."

"Top Box?" Dominic exclaimed, his eyebrows raised. "Bloody hell, we have good seats, but not up there!"

"Tell me about it," Malcolm grumbled.

"Draco has Top Box seats, though," Blaise pointed out.

"You have to remember this is Draco Malfoy we're talking about; of _course_ he has Top Box seats. His father wouldn't settle for anything less," Graham said, rolling his eyes.

"Oy!" a voice called out and they stopped, turning to see a boy with white-blond hair identical to Brianna's, striding over to them.

"Hi, Draco," Dominic said. Draco stopped, looking at Brianna, his mouth set in a bit of a smirk. He wore all black clothing, despite the heat of the day. His pale face contrasted sharply. _How can he be wearing those clothes? I have shorts and a T-shirt on and I can barely stand it._ "Draco, this is Brianna. Brianna, this is Draco Malfoy."

"Hello," Brianna said smiling.

Draco looked at her for a bit more and then he glanced at Dominic. "She a relation of yours?"

"Yes," Dominic said, giving Brianna a look out of the corner of his eye.

Draco's eyebrows rose and then he shrugged, looking back at Brianna, his eyes taking in her white-blond hair and her silvery eyes, so very much like his own. "Hi," he said finally. "So, have you been to a World Cup before?"

Brianna shook her head. "First time for me."

Draco nodded slightly, a small smile forming on his face. "It's going to be a very interesting night."

An uneasy silence filled their area.

"Well," Dominic said finally, breaking the silence and looking around. "We have to go back for lunch. You want to join us?" Everyone nodded and they began walking back.

-------

Eating lunch, they sat around the small fire that Brianna had started, talking about Quidditch, the World Cup, the upcoming school year, and about their summers. Brianna, who was sitting between Dominic and Draco, just listened for the most part, adding to the conversation if she felt that she knew what she was talking about, making sure she didn't reveal anything that would make them realize that she was Muggle-born. It was like sitting in a pit full of snakes; you had to watch every move, or you'd be bit and cast out.

_They seem really nice. This is good. At least I'll have friends before I start school. That's always a plus._ Brianna took a bite of her sandwich and looked around at the multi-colored tents, smiling at all the varieties of witches and wizards that she saw walking around. _This is so brilliant! I never realized anything like this could actually exist, and here I am, at a Quidditch World Cup, surrounded by magic! _Her eyes stopped on a group of three that were walking around, talking to some people, but otherwise just looking at the variety of inhabitants.

"And you should have seen him!" Malcolm was saying, his face red with laughter. "He just didn't stop! Slammed right into the stands, he did! Didn't get hurt; just stood up and flew back out! It was wicked!"

They all laughed at this, including Brianna, although she was still watching the three. The shorter of the two boys, with scraggly black hair and glasses, glanced in her direction and she could have sworn she saw a look of distaste cross his face. The tall red-head looked her way and sneered slightly, rolling his eyes. He whispered something to the boy, who nodded. The bushy-haired girl, however, was just looking at Brianna with pure interest across her face. Her two friends whispered something to her and she shrugged. They disappeared out of view. _What was that all about? Talk about rude!_

"Don't let Weasley get on your nerves," Dominic said quietly.

Brianna jumped slightly, not realizing that anyone had been paying attention to that little pass of looks. "What?"

"The red-haired kid that was giving you the look? That was a Weasley."

"What did I do?" Brianna asked, looking at Dominic, who smiled.

"Oh, you didn't do anything. They probably were looking around, spotted you, someone they didn't recognize, and then saw that you were sitting around a fire with a bunch of Slytherins. They probably think that we recruited you into our ranks or some other rubbish like that," Dominic said, rolling his eyes. He chuckled. "Those are the Gryffindors for you."

"Oh," Brianna said softly, going back to her lunch.

"Don't get yourself too worked up," Dominic said. "The way I figure; if they're not your friends, why worry about their opinions?"

Brianna shrugged. "I suppose. Who were the other two?"

Dominic looked thoughtful. "Let's see . . . Weasley, Granger . . . oh, and Potter."

"Harry Potter?" Brianna asked, raising an eyebrow.

Dominic nodded. "The same."

"Let's not talk about Potter while I'm trying to eat," Draco grumbled. "You'll make me lose my appetite."

"Sorry," Dominic said, smiling. He leaned over to Brianna and whispered, "Draco and Potter have been nemeses since day one. Always at each other's throats. Best to stay away from them when they face off."

Brianna smiled, nodding. "Thanks. I'll remember that."

-------

Excitement filled the air, like electricity, as the afternoon wore on. By dusk, the air itself seemed to be quivering with anticipation and as darkness spread over the thousands of waiting wizards, the Ministry finally gave up and bowed to the inevitable, as magic began breaking out everywhere.

Salesmen were Apparating every few feet, carrying trays and pushing carts full of extraordinary merchandise. There were luminous rosettes – green for Ireland, red for Bulgaria – which were squealing the names of the players, pointed green hats bedecked with dancing shamrocks, Bulgarian scarves adorned with lions that really roared, flags from both countries that played their national anthems as they were waved; there were tiny models of Firebolts that really flew, and collectible figures of famous players, which strolled across the palm of people's hands, preening themselves.

Dominic, Brianna, Malcolm, Blaise, Alex, and Karl were strolling through the campsite, stopping every once and awhile to looked at what the salesmen offered. Brianna finally gave in and bought a pair of Omnioculars that replayed action, slowed everything down, and would flash play-by-play breakdowns. Although Malcolm bought a Bulgarian flag, the rest of them bore their Irish flags.

They split up and as Dominic and Brianna were nearing their tent, a deep, booming gong sounded somewhere beyond the woods, and at once, green and red lanterns blazed into life in the trees, lighting a path to the field.

"Ready?" Gabriel asked, who was waiting outside the tent next to Sarah. They both had Irish hats and banners.

"Definitely!" Brianna exclaimed and they hurried into the wood, following the lantern-lit trail.

-------

"Oh, that was bloody brilliant!" Brianna exclaimed as they made their way down the stairs.

"This was the best day of my life!" Alex exclaimed as they caught up in the crowds now flooding out of the stadium and back to their campsites. Singing surrounded them as they retraced their steps along the lantern-lit path, and leprechauns kept shooting over their heads, cackling and waving their lanterns.

When Gabriel, Sarah, Dominic, and Brianna returned to their tent, they spoke excitedly about the match. However, after Brianna had fallen asleep on Dominic's shoulder, he carried her to her room and went to his own.

_She was dreaming of flying over the woods and then over a sparkling lake. It was a breathtaking view and then she saw the sun and flew towards it, hearing joyous laughter. Then, suddenly, the joyous laughter turned to hideous cackling, a high-pitched cackling, and the sun was overcome with a dark cloud._

"_You cannot escape!" a cold voice cried._

"_No, please!" she cried, but then a terrifying face overwhelmed her vision. It was pure white, with gleaming red eyes, and seemed mask-like._

"Brianna! Wake up! NOW!"

"No, no, please! Let me go!" Brianna mumbled in her sleep, thrashing around.

"I don't believe this," the voice muttered and suddenly something cold and wet hit her face.

Brianna jerked away, bolting upright, sputtering and wiping the water from her face. Dominic's worried face filled her vision as he put away his wand. "What was that for?" she muttered angrily.

"We've got to get out of here! Come on!" He grabbed her wrist, pulling her out of bed.

Instantly, Brianna knew something was wrong, for the noises of the campsite had changed. The singing had stopped and all she could hear was screams and the sounds of people running. Once they were outside, she saw Gabriel and Sarah, looking extremely worried. "We are going to help the Ministry. You two get into the woods as fast as you can!" Gabriel ordered and he and Sarah whipped out their wands, running off.

By the light of the few fires that were still burning, she could see people running away into the woods, fleeing something that was moving across the field toward them, something that was emitting odd flashes of light and noises like gunfire. Brianna and Dominic began running. Loud jeering, roars of laughter, and drunken yells were drifting toward them; then came a burst of strong green light, which illuminated the scene.

A crowd of wizards, tightly packed and moving together with their wands pointing straight upward, was marching slowly across the field. Brianna's heart leapt in her throat and she froze with fear as she saw that these wizards were hooded in black cloaks and wore ghoulish masks, the very same mask she had seen in her dream. She looked around wildly, but Dominic was no where to be seen.

She looked back at the crowd, frozen in fear. High above the group, floating along in midair, were four struggling figures being contorted into grotesque shapes. It was as though these masked wizards on the grounds were puppeteers, and the people above them were marionettes operated by invisible strings that rose from the wands into the air.

More wizards joined this group, laughing, and the marching crowd swelled. Tents were knocked flat or burned, blasted out of the way by wands.

The floating people were suddenly illuminated as they passed over a burning tent and Brianna recognized Mr. Roberts, the campsite manager. _The other three must be his family! How horrible!_ Brianna thought, her mouth open in shock. She watched in horror as one of the marchers flipped Mrs. Roberts upside down, her nightdress falling down to reveal voluminous drawers and she struggled to cover herself up as the crowd below screeched and hooted with glee. Then, one of the marchers made the smallest Muggle spin like a top, sixty feet above the ground.

As the crowd drew closer, Brianna struggled to find willpower to move, but she couldn't. She sucked in her breath as the crowd passed by her, the horrible masks gleaming in the light.

Suddenly, one of them stopped and turned, looking directly at Brianna. Her breath caught in her throat and she tried to swallow, failing. Her heart skipped a few beats and her eyes were wide with fear. Although the yells and shouts drowned out most of the sound, she could have sworn that the masked man said in disbelief, "Brianna?" Then, another one of the masked men grabbed the one that had spoken, muttering something, and they drew back into the crowd.

Suddenly the procession turned and began moving straight towards her. _Could they know I'm a Muggle-born? But how, they couldn't possibly know. _ Fear gripped her chest as her brain swirled with thoughts, trying to figure out something. She closed her eyes. _Please, please, please, anything to get me out of here!_

As the crowd passed by a row of burning tents, a snowy owl flew past them and into the woods.

--------

Shivering with fear, Brianna sat in a clearing, hugging her knees, and rocking back and forth. _Where am I? What just happened? How did I get here? They're going to find me!_

Then she heard a voice unlike any, for it was uttered and not panicked, saying something that sounded very much like a spell. "_MORSMORDRE!_"

Brianna lifted her head, her eyes wide as something vast, green, and glittering erupted from the patch of darkness and flew up over the treetops and into the sky. As she looked closely, she realized that it was a colossal skull, with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue. It rose higher and higher, blazing in a haze of greenish smoke, etched against the black sky.

_The Dark Mark!_ she realized from what she had read about Voldemort's rise to power. It was his sign.

"_STUPEFY!_" roared twenty voices and she saw a blinding series of flashes erupt over the clearing.

Suddenly a hand gripped her shoulder and she screamed. "It's me!" she heard Dominic whisper. "What are you doing here?"

He helped her to her feet but she collapsed, so he scooped her up into his arms, running. "They're after me," she whimpered and withdrew into unconsciousness.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: all JKR's**

**A/N: Hehe... beware evil poptarts and Yorkshire Pudding (grins) You'll see!  
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**Chapter Eleven**

**-Beginner's Magic-**

_She was flying over the woods and then over a sparkling lake. It was a breathtaking view and then she saw the sun and flew towards it, hearing joyous laughter. Then, suddenly, the joyous laughter turned to hideous cackling, a high-pitched cackling, and the sun was overcome with a dark cloud._

"_You cannot escape!" a cold voice cried._

"_No, please!" she cried, but then a terrifying face overwhelmed her vision. It was pure white, with gleaming red eyes, and seemed mask-like._

"_You cannot escape who you are!" A gleaming white hand reached towards her and then she was falling into darkness . . . ._

"Please! No! Please, help!" Brianna screamed, bolting upright in the bed, and shaking with fear.

"Brianna, what is it?" a concerned voice asked.

She looked to her left at Dominic, her lip quivering and her eyes wide. "The dream," she whispered, her chest heaving with heavy breaths and her hands shaking. She tried to pull up the blanket, but failed, her hands trembling too much.

"Brianna, it's okay," Dominic whispered, stepping over to the bed in which she sat and climbed over to her, sitting on the bed next to her. He put his arm around her and pulled her close. She buried her face in his chest, sobbing.

"What's happening?" she whispered. "Why do I keep seeing that face?"

"Shhh, its okay," Dominic comforted, taking her hand to keep it from shaking. He leaned his head against hers. "It's okay. You're safe. No one can harm you."

"If only that was true," she whispered softly.

-------

Dominic walked into the sitting room, Gabriel and Sarah rising as soon as he had entered. "Is she okay?" Gabriel asked, his face full of concern and worry.

Dominic nodded. "She's asleep." He sighed, walking over to the window and looking out over the lake and the mountains. "She had that dream again."

"That poor girl," Sarah said softly, stepping over next to one of the bookshelves and looking at Dominic.

Gabriel looked at the fire that was burning steadily in the fireplace.

After the incident at the World Cup with the Death Eaters, Dominic had searched the woods until he had found Brianna, and he still remembered what she had whispered: _They're after me._ What had she meant by that? Dominic wondered. Did she mean that the Death Eaters were after her? It was all very confusing. After he had found her, he had immediately returned to the campsite, found his parents, and then they had left very quickly, bringing Brianna back to the estate.

Dominic leaned his forehead against the cool glass. Although it was quite warm outside, the estate was still rather chilly in some parts. Dominic sighed. Brianna had been having fits all night, tossing and turning in her sleep, mumbling things. He had not slept since they had returned back from the World Cup, for he had been too worried about her. He had sat at her side the entire time.

A few moments ago, when she had bolted upright in bed, screaming, he didn't know what to think; so he had comforted her as best he could. What else, really, could he do?

"Did they find out what happened?" Dominic asked, looking at his father.

Gabriel didn't move his gaze from the fire. "We searched the woods trying to find who had conjured the Dark Mark. Though we found Mr. Crouch's house-elf holding Harry's wand, we still don't know who actually conjured the Mark."

"Harry Potter's wand?" Dominic asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes."

"How did his wand manage to become into the possession of a house-elf?"

"That we do not know. However, the appearance of the Mark was very disturbing and it caused mass panic, for it hasn't been seen for thirteen years."

Dominic looked back out at the sparkling lake. "But why is seeing that sign such a big deal?"

"Dominic, it was You-Know-Who's sign. He and his followers sent the Dark Mark into the air whenever they killed. I know that you were too young so you do not have any idea how much terror the Mark inspired. But, just think of it this way," Gabriel said, looking at Dominic, who looked back at his father. "What if you came home and found the Dark Mark above your house and knowing what you were about to find inside. Your worst fear . . . worse than you can possibly imagine."

Dominic nodded, wincing and looking back outside. "It'd be horrible," he whispered.

Gabriel took a deep breath. "However, when the Mark appeared, all the Death Eaters scattered. They Disapparated before we could get near enough to unmask any of them."

"Well, if they really were Death Eaters, then why did they scatter when they saw the Mark?" Dominic asked, looking back at his parents. "Wouldn't they be pleased to see it?"

"Dominic," Gabriel said, looking at him pointedly. "If they really were Death Eaters, they would have worked very hard to keep out of Azkaban when You-Know-Who lost power and they told all sorts of lies about him forcing them to kill and torture people. I think that they would be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. After all, they denied they had ever been involved with him once he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives . . . I wouldn't reckon that he would be very pleased with them, would you?"

"No, I suppose not," Dominic said, shaking his head.

"Whoever conjured the Dark Mark, we do not know whether they were doing it for show to support the Death Eaters, or to scare them away," Sarah said.

"However, we do know one thing," Gabriel said, looking at his wife and son. "It was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I would be very surprised if the person who did it had not been a Death Eater before, even if they are not now."

Dominic swallowed, shifted uncomfortably, and looked out the window.

-------

There was a soft knock at the door of the bedroom in which Brianna was staying. "Come in," Brianna said and the door opened, revealing Sarah.

Sarah smiled warmly and walked over to the bed, sitting down and looking at Brianna. "How are you doing?" she asked.

Brianna sighed. "As well as I can, I suppose."

"Have you been able to sleep at all?"

"A little. I've only had that dream once so far . . . so I suppose that's good news," Brianna said, looking down at the blanket, fingering it with the tips of her fingers.

Sarah placed her hand on Brianna's, preventing them from moving. Brianna looked up at Sarah's concerned face. "Yes, that is good. Do you feel any better? Any calmer?"

"Just confused."

"How so?"

"Well, when I was separated from Dominic at the campsite, the masked men . . . they were Death Eaters, weren't they?" Brianna asked.

Sarah nodded. "Yes, they were."

Brianna shook her head. "I knew it," she whispered. Then she spoke up a little. "I . . . is it possible for one of them to know me?"

Sarah gave her a confused look. "Know you?"

"Yes . . . I mean . . . I don't know," Brianna said, frustrated.

"What?"

"One of the Death Eaters stopped, looked straight at me, and I could have sworn he said my name."

Sarah's eyes grew wide. "What? He knew your name?"

"Apparently. The part I'm confused, and terrified, about is _how_ he knew my name. It had to be someone I've met, right?"

Sarah bit her lip. "I don't know; I honestly do not. That would be the logical explanation. But, the fact of the matter is that it would be impossible because the only people that know you, the adults I mean, are Gabriel, Mr. Nott and I. And, as far as I know, none of us are Death Eaters," she added with a small smile.

Brianna managed a small smile herself. "I suppose, but . . . another thing, is how did I end up in that clearing? I don't remember anything after I saw the crowd of Death Eaters turn my way."

"Now that I might be able to answer." Sarah took a deep breath. "Gabriel informed me of all the powers that you possess and the conclusions that he made. Do you remember him mention that you could possibly be an Animagus?"

Brianna nodded, looking at skeptically. "Yes . . . but he said that it was a far-fetched thought."

"Yes, he did, but the truth is, is that we think that you are, indeed, an Animagus."

"What?" Brianna managed, her eyes wide. _Me, an Animagus!_ "How is that possible?"

"Well, with your affinity with and ability for animals, it would be highly possible that you would be an Animagus also. Your connection with animals stems from deep inside and _that_ is what determines whether or not a person can change their form into an animal."

"So I'm an Animagus?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Bloody hell," Brianna whispered, looking down at the blanket. She looked back up at Sarah. "When I get to Hogwarts, Gabriel said that Professor McGonagall could help me if I am truly an Animagus."

Sarah nodded. "Yes, she can, for she is an Animagus herself."

"Right," Brianna said, nodding. "That's what Gabriel said."

"Gabriel and I spoke at great length about your abilities, and we think that it would be best if you came here numerous times over the course of the next year so that we could help you as much as we possibly can to control your talent. That way, you would be prepared for Hogwarts and would have a better understanding of yourself. Also, you need to learn control, for your power can be very dangerous if not controlled. We may be able to help find out exactly what initiates your transformation into your Animagus form; that way, maybe we can help you learn to control that to some extent. Of course, we do not know that much, that is Professor McGonagall's territory, but we will do what we can."

Brianna nodded, smiling. "That would be brilliant. I'd appreciate it very much."

"Gabriel was able to receive special permission from the Ministry so that you will be allowed to practice magic without being fined."

"Sounds good," Brianna said, grinning. "Thank you so much, for everything." Brianna leaned over and hugged Sarah.

Sarah returned the hug and sat back, smiling. "You are a wonderful person, Brianna. I think we can expect great things from you."

Brianna smiled. "I hope so."

-------

"That Rita Skeeter is a nuisance to us all," Gabriel scowled, looking down at the issue of that morning's _Daily Prophet_.

"Gabriel, please . . . we are trying to eat," Sarah said, motioning to the dinner that sat before them.

Brianna, who was sitting next to Dominic, looked between Gabriel and Sarah. "What happened?"

Gabriel shook his head. "That woman has had it in for the Ministry for quite some time. Mr. Weasley is busy at the Ministry, trying to fix all the mess that she has caused. That man, I admire him very much. He works so hard and is very devoted to his work." Gabriel picked up the paper and said, "Just listen to this: _'If the terrified wizards and witches who waited breathlessly for news at the edge of the wood expected reassurance from the Ministry of Magic, they were sadly disappointed. A Ministry official emerged some time after the appearance of the Dark Mark alleging that nobody had been hurt, but refused to give any more information. Whether this statement will be enough to quash the rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods an hour later, remains to be seen._' Pure rubbish," Gabriel said angrily, dropping the paper back onto the table. Brianna looked at him, her eyes wide; she had never seen him so upset. "There were no bodies, of course. Why would there be? Mr. Weasley has been at the office all day trying to smooth this over; all because of that horrible woman."

Sarah placed her hand on her husband's arm. "Gabriel, please, calm down."

Gabriel took a deep breath and looked at Dominic. "I am sorry that I will not be able to take you to Diagon Alley for your supplies. I think I am going to be very busy at the Ministry for the next few weeks." He sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his forehead. "Your mother will take you."

"That's fine," Dominic said, nodding. "I understand."

"Well," Sarah said, smiling and looked around at all of them. "Brianna has agreed to come here throughout the next year to work on her talent and learn some more magic. Will you be coming home at all, Dominic?"

Dominic shook his head. "I won't be coming home over Christmas, since the Yule Ball is being held and something interesting is going to be happening this year; the Triwizard Tournament, so I'll be staying at Hogwarts."

"What's the Triwizard Tournament?" Brianna asked.

"It is a tournament where three champions from three different schools compete in three tasks," Sarah explained. "These tasks are very difficult and rely on the champion's knowledge and quick-thinking. There has not been a Triwizard Tournament in quite some time."

"Which three schools are going to be competing?" Brianna asked.

"Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang," Dominic answered.

"Where are those two located?"

"Beauxbatons is in France and Durmstrang is a school somewhere up north, no one really knows its location," Dominic said. He grinned. "I can't wait to meet the students from Durmstrang."

Brianna smiled. "Well, it sounds brilliant. You'll just have to owl me about everything that goes on," Brianna said, looking at Dominic.

Dominic smiled. "Of course."

"We have many books in the library that contain the basic spells," Gabriel said. They all looked at him, for he had been very quiet for the past few minutes. "Although they are not the books that you will be using for school, they can still help." He managed a smile. "Of course, having learned some of the basic spells, you should be alright. And we do have that wand you've been using, so no need to get one yet. Best wait until you're eleven."

Brianna smiled. "Definitely."

---------

That evening, Brianna sat in the library, reading by lamp-light. Occasionally, she would write down a few notes about a certain spell or a bit of information that she found interesting, but mostly she just read.

That is where Dominic found her the following morning, curled up in one of the chairs, an open book on her lap. He smiled and walked over to her, nudging her awake.

"H – huh?" she mumbled, blinking and rubbing her eyes. She sat up. "Is it morning already?"

Dominic laughed. "Yes. Did you spend the entire night in here?"

Brianna looked around at the vast library and laughed. "I suppose I did."

"Would you like some breakfast before we take you home?"

Brianna nodded, standing and setting the book on the table. "That sounds wonderful." She covered her mouth as she yawned, and then stretched her arms up over her head.

They had reached the door that led into the hallway when Dominic turned to her, grinned. "I bet I can make it down to breakfast before you!" he said tauntingly and sprinted down the hall, his long legs carrying him quickly.

"Dominic Conner, you're not going to win this time!" she yelled after him, sprinting as fast as she could. She saw him run down the stairs and decided to let all caution be thrown to the wind and jumped onto the railing, sliding down the curves, picking up speed. She grinned and waved as she flew past Dominic, who gave her an astonished look.

Of course, she was so busy giving him a smug look that she didn't realize she had come to the end of the banister until she was flying through the air. However, her landing wasn't too bad, as someone caught her. She looked up to see Gabriel looking down at her, smiling and shaking his head, his chest heaving with silent laughter.

"You two," was all he said, the laughter bursting forth. He let her down.

"Thanks Gabriel!" she cried and sprinted into the dining room, Dominic at her heels. She lunged for her chair, sitting down just as Dominic flew at his chair. However, Dominic missed and crashed to the floor, bringing the chair with him.

Brianna's face turned bright red as she tried to muffle her laughter, but in the end she failed and she began laughing hysterically. Clutching her sides, she tried to stop, but failed when Dominic stood, tried to sit back down, and the chair danced away, making him fall onto the ground a second time.

"I suppose you think this is very funny, don't you," Dominic scowled, trying to look serious as he stood, chased down the chair, tackled it, and finally sat down.

"I – I'm sorry," Brianna gasped between fits of laughter. "I – it's just . . . you flew –then the chair -" She couldn't finish, for she collapsed into another round of laughter, this time Dominic joining in.

He shook his head. "I don't believe I just made a complete fool out of myself," he said, chuckling.

"Well, you really didn't have to try very hard."

"What is this?" Dominic asked, looking at her. "Did someone declare a 'Bash Dominic Day' and I don't know it?"

"I'm sorry," Brianna said, smiling and looking down at the plate of toast and eggs in front of her. "But you had it coming."

"For what?"

"For calling me a pyro."

Dominic sighed, raising an eyebrow. "That was months ago."

Brianna shrugged. "It's also the fact that you're a Slytherin."

Dominic crossed his arms. "And exactly _why_ does that entitle you to verbally bash me?"

Brianna shrugged. "You're a Slytherin."

"So?"

"I don't know."

Dominic raised his eyebrows. "You just verbally bashed me because I'm a Slytherin and you don't even know the reason behind it?"

Brianna shrugged.

"You haven't even been Sorted yet! How do you know you won't be in Slytherin?"

"I don't, but I can still tease you about it."

"Well, if you can tease me about being a Slytherin, then I can tease you about being a pyro."

"But I'm not a pyro," Brianna said matter-of-factly. "And you _are_ a Slytherin."

"Didn't I list the reasons why you are a pyro back during the spring holiday?"

"Do you want me to put the Lip-Locker Curse on you?"

"You don't know how to do that," Dominic scoffed.

"Wanna bet?" Brianna asked, folding her arms in front of her. "How do you know I haven't read about it yet?"

Dominic gave her a sideways look. "Would you really do that?"

Brianna shrugged. "If you provoked me enough and I actually could control my magic well enough, yes, I would."

Dominic shook his head, laughing. "Well, I suppose I'll just have to watch how I act then."

Brianna smiled. "Yes, I suppose you will."

Dominic was silent for awhile; then he picked up one of his poptarts from his plate and began making it walk around.

Brianna quirked an eyebrow, taking a bite of her toast. "Dominic, what are you doing?"

"I'm an evil poptart."

"What?" she asked incredulously.

"I'm busy."

"Doing what?"

"Looking for sprinkles for my breakfasty self."

"You've really lost it," Brianna said, shaking her head, but she was smiling. Then she snickered. "Evil poptart?"

Dominic looked up at her. "What's wrong with it?"

Brianna bit her lip to keep from laughing. "You're playing with a poptart."

"So?"

"Aren't Slytherins supposed to be more refined?"

"What, so now you're stereotyping me with my house?" Dominic asked, setting down the poptart and raising his eyebrows.

Brianna shrugged. "Just saying that I don't think a Slytherin would be playing with his food."

"Oh, really, you think so?" Dominic grinned wickedly and picked up the poptart. "Then I suppose a Slytherin wouldn't do this, either." And, with that, he threw the poptart at Brianna, hitting her in the face, the strawberry filling oozing out.

She wiped off the remains of the poptart and picked up her goblet, promptly dousing Dominic with it. He brushed a few sticky strands of his brown hair from his eyes and glared at her.

"That wasn't very nice."

"You started it," Brianna said smugly, but her smug look disappeared when a plate of eggs hit her shirt. She stood, placing her hands on her hips. "Dominic, you're going to pay for that one." She picked up her sausage and threw them at him, but he ducked. As food kept appearing on their plates, they promptly threw it at each other.

Now covered head to toe in food, they faced off, each having plates of food in their hands. "Evil poptart," Brianna said.

"Pyro."

"Slytherin."

Dominic didn't get a chance to reply, however, as both he and Brianna suddenly found themselves levitated and looking at the floor far beneath them. The plates had fallen from their hands and were now lying on the floor.

"I just cannot leave you two alone, now can I?" Brianna looked to see Gabriel standing by the doorway, his wand in his hand.

"We were just –" Dominic began.

"Making a mess?" Gabriel said, smiling.

"Uh –"

"If your mother was here, I do not think she would be very pleased." Dominic swallowed. Gabriel looked up at him, grinning wickedly. "However, since she is out shopping, I do not think she will mind if I do this."

Suddenly, the table beneath them disappeared and a huge vat of Yorkshire pudding sat in its place. Both Brianna and Dominic looked at it wide-eyed.

"Father –" Dominic began.

"Gabriel?" Brianna said, looking nervously at the pudding and then at Gabriel.

"I hope you like Yorkshire pudding," Gabriel said, grinning and then they found themselves falling, hitting the bread-like surface face-first, immersed a few inches.

"I don't like pudding," she heard Dominic's muffled voice say.

"It's not pudding," she mumbled.

"Shut up," came the retort.

--------

Four hours later, a clean Brianna was saying goodbye to a clean Dominic, while Gabriel waited outside in the car. Dominic promised to owl and the two best friends parted.

As Gabriel drove Brianna home, they made plans about when she could visit next to begin her training. She would be coming over every weekend to work as long as her parents didn't mind her visits.

Although she had had a brilliant time at the World Cup, she tried to forget the Death Eaters and that night when the Dark Mark had appeared. Her parents, of course, were very anxious to hear about her time at the World Cup and she spent hours explaining everything that she could without saying a bit about magic.

Soon school started up again and she was so busy between her homework and her training, she hardly had a moment to relax. Her parents were very supportive and kept Maria and Terrance away while she studied for school.

One morning, however, Brianna had been eating breakfast when her mother had come into the kitchen, carrying a book in her hand. "Brianna, I found this laying on the floor when I was cleaning, and I was wondering why you had it," her mother asked, holding up the book.

Brianna swallowed, seeing that it was her _A History of Magic_ book. "Oh, that? I . . ." She hated lying to her mother, but she wasn't sure it was the best time to mention she was a witch. "It's a book I got from the library. We're studying the witch trials and I have to write a paper on it. I just thought that book might help me with the paper."

Her mother looked at her curiously but nodded, setting the book on the table. "Just don't scare me like that. If I thought you were getting into things like witchcraft, I don't know what I'd do." Her mother turned and left the kitchen.

Brianna sat back, sighing in relief. _That was too close. Oh, I hate lying to her! She trusts me so much that she took my word on what I just said. I feel horrible . . . but . . . what a mess I'm in!_

She picked up her book and headed back to her bedroom, putting the book back in the trunk at the foot of her bed. She closed the trunk, sitting on the top. Gabriel had given her the trunk to keep all her books and any other magical things that she might own in. On the top was the Hogwarts Coat of Arms and he had said that when he went to Hogwarts, this was one of two trunks that he had used over the period of seven years. He had also said that he was giving it to her so that she could use it once she went to Hogwarts.

It was nearly December and already it had snowed several times. She had received several letters from Dominic, telling her about the Triwizard Tournament that was being held at Hogwarts. She wanted to see it so badly, but, of course, that was impossible.

She pulled out one of Dominic's letters, his latest, and unfolded it, reading.

Brianna

_Hi, how is everything at home? School going well? I hope so. Here, at Hogwarts, there is so much going on! The first task was just completed and you should have seen what the champions had to do! Now, although I'm not a huge Potter fan, I have to admit, what he did was brilliant! The champions were each assigned a dragon and had to get past it. Well, Potter got the Horntail! Needless to say, he was brilliant. He called his Firebolt and flew around the dragon to get the golden egg. And Krum, the Durmstrang champion, well, he did okay. He cast this spell that hit the dragon in the eye, but it smashed a lot of the eggs, so he didn't get many points, although he did get his egg. Fleur, the Beauxbatons champion, tried to put her dragon in a trance, and it worked until it snored and her skirt caught on fire! But she put it out with water from her wand, so she got her egg. Cedric, our other champion, did a nice piece of work. He Transfigured a rock on the ground into a dog and the dragon went after the dog for a bit but changed its mind and went after him instead. He got the egg, but he got burned. He just got away._

_I wish you could have seen it. It was brilliant! Krum and Potter are tied for first place, so I suppose we'll see what happens with the second task. That's in February._

_Granger is still going on about that S.P.E.W. thing and it's really getting quite annoying. I swear she nearly tackled me the other day, trying to get me to wear one of her stupid badges. You remember what I told you about S.P.E.W., right? Well, I don't see the point. We all have a badge that say 'Support Cedric Diggory' and that's what I wear around. Although, I will admit, Potter isn't doing too badly. _

_Well, I have a three foot essay due in Transfiguration tomorrow, so I'm going to get to work. I nearly have it done. In one way, I am glad that I don't have to worry about Quidditch, but on the other hand, it would be nice to have a few matches._

_I'll owl you after Christmas and tell you how the Yule Ball went. I'm going with this girl named Veronica McClaire; she's a sixth-year in Slytherin. I wish you could attend; we'd have a blast. _

_Your best friend,_

_Dominic_

Brianna smiled, putting the letter away. _I wish I could go too, Dominic, but there's always next year._ She stood and walked over to her desk, taking out her biology book and sitting down to begin her homework.

--------

Near the end of February, Brianna received another letter from Dominic, telling her what had transpired at the second task. Her birthday had passed quickly and she couldn't believe that she was already eleven. It seemed like yesterday that she was just beginning to show the first signs of magic. It was hard to believe that Maria and Terrance were six; they had had their birthday last week. Gabriel and Sarah had sent them some wizarding candy that they had thoroughly enjoyed.

The past few months had been long, for she had been working very hard. Between learning new beginner spells and doing her Muggle school homework, she was very exhausted and was lying on her bed when Yoddle flew through the window, perching on the foot of the bed.

Brianna sat up, smiling. "Hi, Yoddle."

_Hello._ He sighed.

"What's wrong?"

_Oh, it's just the weather. Very cold. Not good flying conditions._

Brianna looked out the window, seeing that it was indeed snowing very hard. She smiled, thinking about what her mother would say if she knew that Brianna had her window open. _Oh well._ She looked back at Yoddle. "Let me go find you something warm."

_Thank you._

She stood and hurried to the bathroom, where she found a paper cup. Filling it with warm water, she hurried back to her room and motioned for Yoddle to hop onto her bedside table. After drinking the warm water, Yoddle gave a hoot.

_That was good. I'm a bit warmer now._

"Good," Brianna said, smiling. She quickly untied the letter from Yoddle's foot and set it on the bed. Digging through her drawer in her bedside table, she found a bag of owl treats and gave Yoddle one. "You're welcome to rest here for a bit and warm up."

_That would be much appreciated. Thank you very much._

Brianna stood. "It's not a problem." She walked over to her closet and rummaged through the bottom drawer. She pulled out the cage she had made for any owls that might arrive and needed a rest. She set it up on the top of her large dresser and closed the window. Turning to Yoddle, she said, "I hope you don't mind me carrying you. I know you're exhausted and I don't want to make you do any more work than you have to."

_It's alright._

Brianna smiled. "Good." She walked over to the bedside table and scooped Yoddle, who was a rather large bird, into her arms and set him down in the cage. Yoddle immediately perched, ruffling his feathers.

_Thank you, again. Much needed rest._

"I bet. I'll leave you alone so you can sleep."

Yoddle hooted in reply and Brianna walked over to her bed, sitting down and unrolling Dominic's letter.

_Brianna,_

_Sorry about the wait. Even though the Triwizard tournament is going on, we got overloaded on homework. The Yule Ball went well. Granger showed up with Krum, if you'll believe that. Draco was with Pansy. Veronica was alright; nice enough, but not the most interesting person in the world. But, I wasn't going to miss the dance and she is really nice and asked me a while before the dance to go with her, so I agreed, of course. I can't believe my third year is almost over! It's hard to believe. Defense Against the Dark Arts is bloody brilliant. Moody is a brilliant professor. I still like Lupin the best, though. _

_Of course, we have a new Care of Magical Creatures professor, Professor Grubbly-Plank. She is good, but, although I won't admit this to any of my Slytherin friends, I rather liked Hagrid. You'll love him, Brianna, when you meet him. He loves animals so much! And I'm sure he'd be extremely shocked when you can actually speak to his animals! I'm warning you, he won't leave you alone, once he finds out that. I'm sure he'll be wanting to show you all his creatures._

_  
We had another Hogsmeade trip and we had a brilliant time. Well, as I'm sure you're anxious to know, the second task was rather interesting. The champions had to dive down into the lake and rescue the people that they would miss most from the bottom where the people were being held by the Merpeople. Fleur was the first to surface, but she didn't manage to get her hostage. She used a Bubble-Head Charm but she was attacked by grindylows. Cedric came out after her and had his hostage, but he was just outside the time limit. We were really pleased, though, because he received the highest number of points. I was grinning ear to ear when his score was announced, as were the rest of the Slytherins. We're rooting him on for the finish, although, I hate to admit it, but Potter stands a good chance. Krum tried to Transfigure himself into a shark, but I guess he only got it part way. He did bring back his hostage, which was Granger of all people. And Potter, that kid amazes me. He used this weed called gillyweed. It enables you to breathe underwater. He returned last and was well outside his time limit, but it was because he was trying to help all the other hostages. He rescued Fleur's sister, who had been Fleur's hostage to retrieve, as well as his own, which was Weasley, of course. He scored the second-highest. _

_The third and final task isn't until the beginning of June and everyone's talking about it. We don't know what's going to happen but I bet either Potter or Cedric will win. At least it'll be a Hogwarts champion. Like I said before, I'm rooting Cedric on to win, but I can't wait to see what Potter is going to do._

_Well, I hope everything is going well. Father tells me that your lessons are proceeding well and that you are a very talented witch. I can't wait to see what you can do. I'll be writing soon, probably won't be as long as this one. Just a short note. Once the third task is completed, I'll write you. Hope to hear from you soon!_

_Your best friend,_

_Dominic_

Brianna smiled, putting the letter down. _I wish I were at Hogwarts right now. The Triwizard Tournament sounds fascinating! What I wouldn't give to see it. Hagrid sounds fascinating and I can't wait to meet him. It sounds like an ideal person for me to meet if he loves creatures as much as Dominic says he does._ She stood, stretching. _Smells like dinner time_, she thought with a smile and headed downstairs.

--------

"Brianna, can you help me?" Maria asked, sitting at the kitchen table, and looking down at her math homework helplessly. It was a blustery Monday evening, as they had just entered the month of March.

"Sure," Brianna said, smiling and pulled up a seat. "What do you need help on?"

"We're doing addition and patterns."

Brianna looked down at the paper that consisted of several addition problems and a number of sequences. Maria had done a few of the addition problems, but had got stuck on the last few. And the sequences she hadn't even started on.

"Okay, Maria," Brianna said. Her sister looked at her. "What's the number that comes after ten?"

Maria looked upwards, thinking. "Um . . . eleven."

Brianna smiled. "Right. Now, what about two after that?"

"Um . . . fifteen?"

"Okay, now look at this," Brianna said, holding up two fingers. "One, one. Eleven." Maria, looking at Brianna's fingers, nodded. "Now," she said, holding up another finger. "One, and two."

"Twelve."

Brianna smiled. "Good. Now, what about one, three?"

Maria bit her lip, thinking. Finally, she said, smiling, "Thirteen!"

"Good! Okay, what comes after thirteen? One, four."

"Fourteen."

"Okay, so fourteen is three more than eleven. What comes before fourteen?"

"Thirteen."

"Okay, so this problem," Brianna said, pointing to the problem that Maria had been stuck on, "is eleven plus two."

"So, that's thirteen?"

"You don't have to ask. You know."

Maria nodded. "Thirteen." She wrote the answer down.

"Very good," Brianna said, smiling.

Over the next hour, Brianna helped Maria with the rest of her homework, working on sequences with squares and circles. Patiently describing everything, Brianna smiled. _This makes me feel really good; to be able to help people. Maybe I'll be a mediwitch. Either that or I want to get into the Department of Magical Creatures. That would be brilliant. I still can't transform into an my Animagus form at will, but at least we've come to the conclusion that it's my emotions that initiate the change. I just have to keep my emotions from rising too high if I don't want to change._

After Maria finished her homework, Terrance came in and Brianna helped him with his homework. He had to look at pictures of various creatures and say whether it was an animal, a bird, or a fish. She pointed out certain characteristics that helped him decide, and patiently watched as he wrote down the names.

"Thank you, Brianna," Terrance said and hugged her. He smiled and ran up to his room.

"You are so good with them," she heard her mother say and Brianna turned to see her mother standing in the doorway, a smile on her face. Her dark hair had been pulled back in a bun and she wore a simple green dress.

"I try," Brianna said, smiling and standing.

"You're so grownup. Before you know it, you'll be going to college, and then what will I do without you?" her mother asked, smiling. "Or, more, what will Maria and Terrance do without you? They're so attached and you're so patient."

"Thanks," Brianna said. "They're the greatest. I love them a lot and I don't know what I'd do without them either. Or you and dad."

Her mother smiled and walked over, pulling Brianna into a hug. "I love you, Brianna, you're a good girl and I know that I can expect many great things from you."

_Sarah said that too,_ Brianna thought with a smile.

"I love you too, Mom," Brianna said and pulled out of the hug. Her mother smiled and Brianna headed up to her room.

-------

"Okay, now point your wand towards the object you want to call and really concentrate. Then, when you are ready, say, 'Accio'," Gabriel instructed.

Brianna nodded, facing a stack of books on a table in the library. She had been working for several hours already that day, and this was a slightly tougher lesson, as she had already learned the basic spells and Gabriel was now teaching her a few more of the advanced spells. Nothing really hard, but challenging enough for her. It had taken a lot of work to be able to focus through her wand to perform the spells and charms, but all her hard work was beginning to pay off.

So far, she had only succeeded in 'Alohomora', but even then it had proved rather difficult. However, as her lessons with Gabriel progressed, it was becoming easier and today she would be working on her Summoning Charm.

Brianna focused on the top book and pointed her wand. "_Accio!_" she commanded and the book didn't even budge. She tried to focus harder. "_Accio!_" Nothing. _Oh come on you stupid book. Move! _"_Accio!_" Finally, it budged a little, falling off the shelf. She took a few deep breaths and then tried again.

This time, the book flew forward a bit, but dropped about halfway to her, onto the oriental carpet.

"Just keep up your concentration. You are doing very well."

Brianna nodded and swallowed. Focusing her mind, picturing the book coming towards her, she was so intent on the book that she was completely stunned when the book flew at her face; hitting her and making her stumble back.

"Ouch," she murmured, rubbing her face. _What just happened?_ She pulled away her hand; good, no blood. _That had hurt!_ "What just happened, Gabriel?" she asked, looking at Gabriel, who had a smile on his face.

"You got it all the way across the room, congratulations," he said, smiling.

"Thanks," Brianna said, grinning.

"Okay, try the spell again. This time, though, focus on the book, but keep your awareness of your surroundings. Then you will not be hit by the object you are calling," he said with a smile.

Brianna smiled. "Thanks. I'll remember that." She turned back to the stack of books, focusing her mind on the top book, but making sure that she was still aware of everything else. She thought about the book coming towards her, focusing hard through her wand, and grinned when the book flew into her waiting hand. "Brilliant!"

"Very good, Brianna," Gabriel said, smiling. "So, with your magic, you have to focus intently on exactly what you want to accomplish, think of the spell that would help you accomplish this task, and then perform it." Brianna nodded, setting down the book. "Now, I'd like to see you try a different sort of magic. Wandless. On that book."

"Wandless?" Brianna asked, arching an eyebrow.

Gabriel nodded. "Yes. It is a rawer form of magic, less focused, but it would do you good to be able to do a little. You will have to focus quite a bit more, but go ahead and try."

"Alright," she said, focusing on the stack of books again. She held out her left hand, her wand arm, and shouted, "_Accio!_" The book didn't even move. She tried several more times and only succeeding in getting it to move about an inch.

Again, though, she caught a flash of concern across Gabriel's face, but she didn't focus too much on it. However, it had happened every time she used magic; almost as if he was worried about something. She knew she had to ask, for it would bug her eternally if she didn't.

"Gabriel, I have to ask you a question."

"Yes?"

"Why do you always look worried when I use magic?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that every time I reach out to perform a spell, you look worried. What are you worried about?"

"It is nothing."

Brianna quirked an eyebrow. "Gabriel, I know you well enough to know that when you look worried, it _is_ something."

Gabriel sighed, smiling slightly. "I suppose you caught me red-handed, then. You are left-handed."

"So?"

"Salazar Slytherin and You-Know-Who were left-handed."

Brianna sighed, shaking her head. She rolled her eyes. "Why am I continually connected with those two?"

"Being left-handed does not necessarily mean you are bad, Brianna"

"Oh?" Brianna said, quirking an eyebrow. "Then why do all the left-handed wizards we know of are Dark wizards?"

"I am sure that there are plenty of left-handed people that are not Dark witches are wizards."

"Have you met one?"

Gabriel was silent for a bit. Then he sighed. "No."

"Then I'm a Dark witch."

"No!" Gabriel cried, looking alarmed. "Do not ever think that! You are what you choose to be. It is not your abilities that define who are. It is your choices. If you choose to use your power for good, then you will be good. Harry Potter has some abilities that could be connected with the Dark Arts, and was nearly put in Slytherin. But he chose not to be in Slytherin. Therefore, he was placed in Gryffindor. And he has done extraordinary things for the wizarding world since. He has saved our world so many times."

Brianna nodded. "Right." But she wasn't too sure. It would be just her luck to find out about her powers, and then find out that she was a Dark witch. It was bad enough that her mother thought that witchcraft was rubbish and that she was going to have a _very_ difficult time explaining what she was when her letter arrived, which reminded her. "Gabriel, I'm supposed to receive my letter in a week."

"The letters will not be mailed until the end of June because of the Triwizard Tournament final on June twenty-fourth. You should receive you letter on that day."

Brianna nodded. "Good, that gives me more time to figure out exactly _how_ I'm supposed to explain to my parents about my talents."

Gabriel smiled. "Yes, that will be quite an interesting evening when you receive your letter. If you wish, Sarah and I will come over on that evening so that we can help smooth over any difficulties."

Brianna nodded. "Thanks. I'm sure my parents would love to have you two over, since you've done so much for me. And I'd appreciate the support. I may need it when it comes time to reveal everything."

Gabriel nodded. "Yes. Well," he said, taking a deep breath, "shall we continue?"

"Definitely," Brianna said, grinning.

--------

On June twenty-fourth, Brianna was over at the Conners' working on her magic and was currently eating lunch. A copy of the _Daily Prophet_ sat on the table in front of her. Since she didn't receive the paper, the only time she got to read it was when she was over at the estate.

Picking it up, she looked at the front page. The headline, which read "Harry Potter, Disturbed and Dangerous," was followed beneath by a picture of the boy. He looked very sullen and not very happy, his bright green eyes looking quite annoyed. Her eyes traveled down to the article.

_The boy who defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is unstable and possibly dangerous, _writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent._ Alarming evidence has recently come to light about Harry Potter's strange behavior, which casts doubts upon his suitability to compete in a demanding competition like the Triwizard Tournament, or even to attend Hogwarts School._

_Potter, the _Daily Prophet_ can exclusively reveal, regularly collapses at school, and is often heard to complain of pain in the scar on his forehead (relic of the curse with which You-Know-Who attempted to kill him). On Monday last, midway through a Divination lesson, your _Daily Prophet_ reporter witnessed Potter storming from the class, claiming that his scar was hurting too badly to continue studying._

_It is possible, say top experts at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, that Potter's brain was affected by the attack inflicted upon him by You-Know-Who, and that this insistence that the scar is still hurting is an expression of his deep-seated confusion._

"_He might even be pretending," said one specialist. "This could be a plea for attention."_

_The _Daily Prophet_, however, has unearthed worrying facts about Harry Potter that Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts, has carefully concealed from the wizarding public._

"_Potter can speak Parseltounge," reveals Draco Malfoy, a Hogwarts fourth-year. "There were a lot of attacks on students a couple of years ago, and most people thought Potter was behind them after they saw him lose his temper at a dueling club and set a snake on another boy. It was all hushed up, though. But he's made friends with werewolves and giants too. We think he'd do anything for a bit of power."_

_Parseltounge, the ability to converse with snakes, has long been considered a Dark Art. Indeed, the most famous Parselmouth of our times is none other than You-Know-Who himself. A member of the Dark Force Defense League, who wished to remain unnamed, stated that he would regard any wizard who could speak Parseltounge "as worthy of investigation. Personally, I would be highly suspicious of anybody who could converse with snakes, as serpents are often used in the worst kinds of Dark Magic, and are historically associated with evildoers." Similarly, "anyone who seeks out the company of such vicious creatures as werewolves and giants would appear to have a fondness for violence."_

_Albus Dumbledore should surely consider whether a boy such as this should be allowed to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. Some fear that Potter might resort to the Dark Arts in his desperation to win the tournament, the third task of which takes place this evening._

"Oh, my Lord," Brianna whispered, her eyes wide as she set down the paper.

"Brianna?" Brianna looked up to see Sarah standing in the doorway of the dining room. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine; I just read something very disturbing."

"What is it?" Sarah asked, walking over and sitting down next to Brianna. Her eyes flitted over to the discarded paper and she frowned, nodding. "Oh, that Skeeter woman has struck again," Sarah said quite angrily. "I suppose you just read her recent article on Harry Potter?"

Brianna nodded. "Yes, I did. It spoke about Parselmouths and that anyone that was a Parselmouth should be investigated." She bit her lip worriedly, looking down at her lap. "That includes me."

"Oh, Brianna," Sarah said, placing a hand on Brianna's shoulder, making Brianna look up. "Do not believe all that rubbish that Rita Skeeter writes. She has absolutely no clue what she is talking about. She makes Harry Potter out to be this weak child, and he is anything but weak."

"But the stuff about Parselmouths is true. It's a mark of a Dark witch or wizard to be able to speak Parselmouth."

"Brianna, did Gabriel not tell you that Harry Potter is also a Parselmouth?"

"Yes," Brianna said, nodding. "But that's just because You-Know-Who transferred some of his powers to Harry when he was cursed."

"Yet, he's still a Parselmouth, and he's good."

"I don't know," Brianna said, looking down.

"Brianna Jacquel Olsen, look at me." Brianna looked up at Sarah's stern face. "You are _not_ evil. You are anything but. You are one of the nicest people that I know and yes, you may have the ability to talk to snakes, but just because you have that talent, does not mean one thing about you being evil. Do you understand me?"

Brianna was quite for a few moments, and then nodded. "Okay."

"Do not believe a word that woman writes in the _Daily Prophet_. She is just out to get people."

Brianna nodded again. "I suppose. Gabriel did say that she doesn't have a clue what she's talking about."

"Exactly." Sarah gave her a stern look. "You promise me not to speak any more of this rubbish about you being a Dark witch."

"I promise."

"Smile." Brianna cracked a small smile and Sarah smiled back. "Good. I do not like to see you depressed." She took a deep breath. "Well, you had better get back to your lessons. Gabriel is waiting in the library."

Brianna nodded, smiling. "Yes, I'll go now. I had just finished lunch, anyway."

She stood and she and Sarah left the dining room.

--------

That evening, after dinner, Sarah, Gabriel, and Brianna were sitting in the study, waiting for her letter to arrive, and Gabriel and Sarah were telling her about their years at Hogwarts.

"And so the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin existed then too?" Brianna asked.

"Yes, it was just as bad as it is now," Gabriel said with a laugh. "Oh, you should have seen some of the scrupples that we and the Slytherins got into. And especially during Quidditch. Our games were always the most brutal."

Brianna smiled. "I believe that."

"Well, I think one of the best pranks we pulled on the Slytherins one day was the view-switch," Gabriel said. "We were supposed to be in Potions, and Greg, my best friend, and I decided to curse the room so that when the Slytherins walked in, everything would be upside down."

Brianna laughed. "That would have been quite a sight."

"Oh, it was," Gabriel said, laughing.

"At least I can say that Ravenclaw had no part in any of the Gryffindors' pranks," Sarah said, but she was laughing too.

"I can't wait until Hogwarts. It's going to be brilliant!" Brianna exclaimed, grinning.

"I wonder who they will have teaching DADA next year," Sarah mused.

"It won't be the same?" Brianna asked.

"I doubt it," Gabriel said. "What Dominic said was true; no professor has ever lasted longer than a year in that position."

"Well, I just hope we get a good teacher. From what Dominic told me about his first-year, that Lockhart had absolutely no clue what he was doing."

Sarah and Gabriel smiled. "Well, he is safely put away in St. Mungo's," Gabriel said, chuckling.

"Would you like something to drink, Brianna?" Sarah asked.

Brianna nodded and Sarah stood, but Gabriel stopped her. "I will go get the drinks. I want you to explain to Brianna about what we discussed about what to do while at Hogwarts."

Sarah nodded, smiling. "Okay," she said, sitting back down. She turned to Brianna. "Okay, now –" She was cut off as Gabriel suddenly let out a loud yell and dropped to his knees, clutching his left forearm fiercely. His face was taut with pain and his normally light-brown skin was deathly pale.

"Gabriel!" Brianna yelled and ran over to him.

"No," he rasped as Sarah ran over. "I have to go." He looked up at Sarah. "It is burning again and it had been becoming clearer for many weeks now. What we feared as come to pass. I have to go."

Sarah gasped, her eyes wide, and her hands flew up to her mouth. "You do not mean –"

"Yes. I will do what I can." With that, he stumbled up and sprinted out of the room, his black cape swirling after him.

"Sarah?" Brianna asked, her eyes wide and her heart beating rapidly. "What just happened?"

Sarah, who had been looking after Gabriel, a look of horror on her face, was silent. Finally, she turned to Brianna. "Brianna," she said, taking a deep breath. The horror on her face was now replaced with a look that Brianna couldn't quite define. "Gabriel . . . is a Death Eater."

* * *

**Yes I know... EVIL! evil cliffy :D**

** What are your thoughts? I'd love to know  
**


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